


Willing Sacrifices

by alex_halcyon



Series: Sacrifices Universe [3]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Time Travel, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-27
Updated: 2019-10-20
Packaged: 2020-02-07 10:01:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 22
Words: 143,997
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18618358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/alex_halcyon/pseuds/alex_halcyon
Summary: Kakashi and Obito were only meant to say their final good-byes, but apparently, the Sage of Six Paths had other plans.Choosing to return to the days of their youth, Kakashi, Obito, and Rin find themselves in a world a bit different to the one they remembered, and yet the same in many ways.The trio find themselves facing new and old dangers, which sucks for Kakashi and Obito, who should've thought the whole 'change the world' thing through more when they realised they'd gone from grown men and powerful shinobi to puny kids again. Not that Rin minded, she was just glad to have her teammates back, and no way was she going to let them get into trouble again.





	1. Prologue: Shifting Time

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to the third and final installment of the Sacrifices Universe! Definitely recommend reading the other two stories first since there are a lot of things you'll be confused about if you don't. 
> 
> I'm currently cross-posting from my fanfiction account to here, and am also still writing this story.  
> Hope you enjoy it!

 

**Prologue: Shifting Time**

Chakra connects all things.

The Fourth Shinobi War had released more chakra into the world than any other time since the first sealing of Kaguya Otsutsuki, and the effect of that was greater than anyone could have predicted. The previous reincarnations of Indra and Asura met, Naruto and Hashirama, Sasuke and Madara. The cycle of hatred was broken by Naruto and Sasuke, and the world suddenly stopped. Time had been made into a construct for humans to understand, but it was not something tangible to grasp on to. It shifted and moved and overlapped.

As Sakura Haruno and Itachi Uchiha were enveloped by the chakra of Asura and Indra, the soul of Kakashi Hatake disappeared into a plane of chakra where he was met by Obito Uchiha once again. He'd expected to say his final good-bye to his rival, teammate-turned-enemy-turned ally and friend. As they stood again facing one another, adults for a moment before their bodies changed again, and they were same age they were when Obito was lost, another presence appeared in the chakra plane. Kakashi and Obito stared at the Sage of Six Paths with shock and surprise.

"What are you doing here?" Obito blurted out.

The Sage gave them both a small smile, but it wasn't exactly happy.

"How strange it is to find two people whose stories are so very like my own children, and yet are not incarnates of them."

Kakashi frowned.

"I guess we're just lucky," he replied dryly.

He didn't like that the Sage was here, in Obito's spiritual chakra plane. It meant something was happening, and it was probably going to be something he didn't like.

"Kakashi. Don't be rude," Obito scolded him.

Kakashi ignored him.

"I think you should answer Obito's question," he said to the Sage. "What are you doing here?"

The Sage of Six Paths bowed his head in acquiesce.

"My sons have made a decision that will cause the world you've lived in to change."

Kakashi frowned and vaguely remembered the chakra around Sakura and Itachi before his consciousness faded and ended up here.

"What are they doing to Sakura and Itachi?" Kakashi asked.

The Sage hummed with thought and disapproval.

"They have manipulated time, and sent those two into the past in an attempt to fix Indra's mistakes."

Kakashi felt his chest seize in panic.

"That's not… What do you mean?"

"The bonds forged between Sakura, Itachi, Naruto, and Sasuke were so strong and deep that my sons felt them. Zetsu is Indra's greatest regret. In an attempt to stop him before the worst begins, Sakura and Itachi have been sent to the previous reincarnations."

"To Madara?" Obito asked, sounding slightly panicked.

The Sage of Six Paths nodded.

"Send me back to them," Kakashi demanded.

"I can't," the Sage said.

"Then what are you doing here?" Kakashi asked angrily.

He might look like he was 13 again, but he was definitely not, and Sakura was capable of handling herself but Zetsu and Madara were dangerous targets. He needed to support her.

"I'm here to give you both a choice." He looked at them. "Understand this: the actions of Sakura and Itachi will change the world as you knew it. Past or present, whatever life you led outside of this place is now changed."

Kakashi took a deep breath. The cause and effect of time-travel was not something he wanted to think about.

"What's the choice you're offering?" Obito asked.

It sounded impossible, and yet…if they could succeed, and seal away Zetsu, and somehow keep Madara from turning against the Leaf…the possibilities of change were endless. Kakashi glanced at Obito, how would their lives change?

"Some things happen because they are meant too. Perhaps not in the same way, but they happen all the same. War is one of those things," the Sage said with a distant look in his eyes.

Kakashi and Obito exchanged a look.

"I'm giving you a chance, a choice, that can never be offered again," he said. "To go back, to live your life over."

"You just said that Sakura and Itachi would change things," Kakashi argued.

"He also said some things are meant to happen," Obito said quietly, looking at Kakashi. "So maybe Kannabi Bridge…"

Kakashi swallowed and looked at the Sage. He was offering them a chance to change what happened that day? If they went back, could Obito live? If they didn't, would he die? If Madara was saved by Sakura and Zetsu was gone, which Kakashi had no doubt his student would manage that somehow, what else would be different. He had to know. It wasn't even a choice anymore, especially if the world outside was changed as he said.

"I'll go," he said quietly.

Obito looked at him and nodded.

"Me too," he said. Then he frowned. "But Rin…"

The Sage of Six Paths smiled at them both and moved aside.

"I hope you're not thinking about leaving me behind."

Kakashi's felt himself freeze when he saw her. Rin, smiling, just like she was before…before his hand went through her chest.

"Rin," he breathed. He never thought he'd see her again, not until he died. Maybe not even then.

"Rin!" Obito cried. "I thought you were waiting for me."

Rin sighed with a little exasperation.

"I told you I'd always be watching over you, Obito." The boy's cheeks blushed. "So there's no way we're not doing this together. We're a team."

Kakashi stared at her, she was just like he remembered. Nothing about her had changed.

"The past you will return too will not be the same as the one you knew," the Sage of Six Paths said, breaking Kakashi from his thoughts.

Obito waved his hand excitedly.

"It doesn't matter, we'll change the world!" He declared, making Kakashi roll his eyes.

In a more serious voice, he went on, "I made a promise with Naruto, and in his stead, I'll become a Hokage he can be proud of."

Kakashi swallowed thickly. Rin broke the tension when she giggled.

"You're never going to Hokage so long as Sensei's around."

Obito, returning to his adolescent behaviour, pouted and looked at Kakashi.

"You believe in me, right, Kakashi?"

Kakashi sighed and turned to the Sage, who looked at them with humour in his eyes.

"Sakura and Itachi?" He asked.

The Sage nodded solemnly.

"If they didn't succeed, I couldn't offer you this chance," he said.

Rin frowned.

"But I don't get it… they only just went back in time now."

"Rin, time isn't always chronological, and we're not exactly alive right now," Obito said to her.

"I don't really get it," Rin said, tilting her head to the side thoughtfully. "But, okay!"

Kakashi swallowed, ignoring the other two. He looked at the Sage and understood everything that went unsaid in what he had told Kakashi. Sakura and Itachi would succeed, but by the time Kakashi was alive, both of them would be dead. Time would have passed and the world moved on. He felt pain and loss at the thought of it. He looked down when he felt Rin take his hand, and then she took Obito's.

"It's time," she said to them both.

Kakashi gave a short nod. It was time. Time to, as Obito put it, change the world.


	2. Part One: Days of Youth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please don't forget that this is an AU where the future/past Obito and Kakashi came from was non-massacre. So Itachi was never in the Akutsuki. (Please refer to Sacrifices for Peace, chapter 17 for more specifics.)
> 
> Anyway, there are SO MANY discrepancies with the canon-timeline and Kakashi's era, so I have just taken and adapted what fits with my story. Here are my notes related to the ages of the characters:
> 
> \- Kakashi, Obito & Rin are 9 years old.  
> \- Kakashi graduated at 5, he is a 'special chunin' (see below)  
> \- Gai graduated from the academy the year after Kakashi at 7 years old.  
> \- Kakashi, Obito, Rin, Gai, Asuma and Kurenai are all the same age.  
> \- Ebisu, Genma, Raido, Aoba, are all 2-3 years older than the main trio, and graduated from the academy at 10, 1 1/2-2 years earlier than this story.  
> \- Kotetsu, Izumo and Anko are 1-2 years younger than Kakashi and still in the academy at the beginning of this story.  
> \- Shisui is 5 years old and an academy student.
> 
> Seriously, it's way to freaking complicated. Please don't get all picky about this. It's so much to keep track of and I've done the best I can to keep things in line with canon and with my own changes.
> 
> Special Chunin
> 
> An uncommon rank given to exceptional genin between ages 6 and 10.  
> Introduced by Tobirama Senju and Sakura Uchiha, for the prodigy genin who are lawfully too young to be promoted to full chunin.  
> In Konoha, the minimum age of a chunin is 10 years old. Until that age is reached, they are not permitted to take the chunin exams. There are no exceptions.  
> This was a law put forth by Sakura and Tobirama in an effort to protect the children in times of war, and in the memory of Itachi and Kakashi, who Sakura knew both had intense childhoods due to their prodigious talents and fast promotions.

 

**Part One: Days of Youth**

**Chapter 1**

Kakashi opened his eyes and lifted his hand to his face. He looked at it carefully.  _Small,_  he thought, flexing it open and closed. His eyes drifted over the ceiling. Bland, concrete-grey, familiar. Morning light filtered into the room through his window over his bed, open the smallest amount to let a current of fresh air into the room. He closed his eyes again and took a deep breath. It worked. Whatever the Sage of Six Paths had done had worked. He was, he looked at the empty bedside table, back in time. Before his team had been formed, it seemed, since there was a definite lack of photograph anywhere in the room.

He stood, and felt weird immediately. His mask was on, like normal, which he was glad about. He looked down, looked up, looked straight ahead and sighed heavily. He was nine years old again, with the mind of a tired, two war-veteran, thirty-year-old. Excellent. He'd almost been Hokage for a second there, being a chunin ( _special chunin_ , his mind corrected him) again didn't sound fun. Maybe this wasn't a good idea after all.

But, he closed his eyes and breathed deeply, he was supremely glad of one thing: his chakra was the same as it had been before. His entire body sagged in relief. Reverting back to his mini-kid reserves of chakra would have killed him. He silently thanked the Sage for Six Paths for whatever divine intervention he'd given for that to happen. Although he had to admit, it was going to be really hard to explain.

Rolling his shoulders, Kakashi listened to his grumbling stomach and padded into his sparsely stocked kitchen and cooked up some breakfast. He glanced at the calendar on the otherwise bare wall. It was the day they were being assigned to their teams. He felt a flutter of excitement in his chest, despite himself. It was a day that had brought his team together, and once again, would do the same. But this time the outcome would certainly be different, especially now that he and Obito (probably) would be on better terms.

He wondered how to approach this second chance at life. Before, he'd been a brat. Stubbornly following the rules, keeping everyone at arm's length. Now he wasn't like that. Those kids…his kids… they'd broken him down and softened him up. He frowned. Memories were pushing at his conscious, memories that weren't his own, and yet were. He closed his eyes, abandoning his half-eaten breakfast and allowed himself to sift through them, the memories of his younger-new self. Some things were different, but many things were the same. His father's suicide had still happened, which hurt Kakashi to know. Some things will be different, other things the same. But, now, thanks to a lifetime to think and forgive and understand, Kakashi didn't care what anyone else thought, he knew his father was a hero and nothing was going to change his mind on that.

It was the vague memories of Konoha's changed history that caught his attention and he smiled softly at them. Sakura. Kakashi felt a pang of sadness about not having any knowledge of what happened to Itachi. He'd have to dig into the history books and the Uchiha archives for more. Sifting through the vague recollections, he saw with pride how Sakura had been considered an equal alongside the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, and Second Hokage, Tobirama Senju, and her husband, Madara Uchiha.

 _Seems like she saved Madara in more ways than one_ , he thought wryly, frowning a little.

He really needed to do some more research and find out just how she'd fared. But he did faintly remember his father telling him about Lady Sakura Uchiha when he was a child. Kakashi folded his arms thoughtfully, going over his memories with a fine-toothed comb. His father… he had definitely known Sakura.

"BAKASHI!"

Kakashi knew that voice anywhere. He shot out of his seat and ran to the window, pushing it open and seeing Obito on the road below him, waving wildly and smiling.

Kakashi raised his hand and waved back.

"Yo."

"Come on, Kakashi!" Obito called out. "We're gonna be late!"

Kakashi rolled his eyes at the irony of that statement and shrugged.

"Come on. Let's go see Minato-sensei!" Obito called excitedly.

Kakashi couldn't say he wasn't excited to do that.

"Where's Rin?" He asked.

"She said she'll meet us there and that at least one of us has to be on time," Obito replied with a grin.

"Come up," Kakashi said. "We should talk first."

Obito's face turned serious, and he nodded, scaling the wall quickly and jumping in through the window. Kakashi closed it behind him. Obito looked around.

"You need to decorate. It's depressing in here."

Kakashi shrugged.

"Never needed much."

Obito and Kakashi looked at one another. It was a little surreal, seeing Obito as a kid again, in the flesh. His face wasn't marred by scars, his goggles were around his head, over his headband. Both of them had the eyes they were born with.

"Do you have all your chakra?" Kakashi asked.

Obito nodded.

"Yeah, but I kind of miss the Rinnegan," he said wistfully. He eyed Kakashi. "I'm not giving you my eye this time. I'm kind of attached to them. They've been torn out of my head too many times."

Kakashi didn't answer.

"Want some breakfast?" He offered instead.

Obito nodded and sat down eagerly.

"So." Kakashi sat across from him. "Have you had a sweep of your memories?"

Obito shrugged.

"It's basically the same. A few changes, but not as much as I thought." He grinned a little. "Sakura had a good time, seems like, getting married and being famous and all."

Kakashi frowned.

"Of course, Sakura was always my favourite student."

Obito laughed.

"Well, she did it," he said, looking far away all of a sudden. "She and Itachi did it."

Kakashi nodded.

"So we have no Zetsu to worry about, no evil Madara." He looked at Obito curiously. "Do you know what happened to Itachi?"

Obito shook his head.

"Not really, but I have some vague recollection of a story told to me once about how Izuna, Madara's brother, and Itachi both died heroes."

"We need to find out more," Kakashi said.

Obito's eyes widened.

"Oh man. You know what I just realised?"

"How could I possibly know that?"

"Itachi. Mikoto is about to burst!"

Kakashi nearly choked.

"What?"

Obito's eyes widened.

"Yeah. He's going to be born again!"

"Time-travel is weird." Kakashi shook his head.

Obito gulped down a piece of mackerel.

"So now we can live our lives over, are you going to be all snotty again?"

"Are you going to be an idiot again?" Kakashi shot back.

Obito grinned, but it fell into something that looked a little sad. His face and body were young, but Obito's mind was not. Both of them had a lifetime of memories and feelings to deal with.

"I feel free, you know?"

Kakashi did know, he felt a similar sense of freedom.

"So, I'll just be me. The real me, who I wanted to be, and with all my dreams possible again. I'm definitely going to be Hokage this time."

Kakashi chuckled.

"You can try." He sighed. "Any ideas on how to explain our amazing chakra reserves to Minato-sensei?"

Obito chuckled nervously.

"No," he said. "It sucks he's a sensor-type."

"We're going to have to keep a tight hold on them. No going all out, for a while at least. We're only nine, remember."

Obito jutted out his bottom teeth in a pout.

"I was looking forward to sparring with you."

"Well. We've got the bell test in… five minutes," Kakashi said, glancing at the clock on the wall. He sighed. "How much do you want to bet Minato-sensei will know something weird is up the minute we get there?"

"This is going to be harder than we thought, isn't it?" Obito sagged down in his chair. "Well. We should get going."

"You go, I'll catch up, I have something to do first. I'll be there soon," Kakashi said.

Obito looked doubtful, but he shrugged and left the apartment. Kakashi was almost positive that he'd arrive before Obito would. Something was bound to happen on the way there. Kakashi quickly dressed and headed out the door. He was off in search of some reading material.

* * *

Rin couldn't wipe the smile off her face. For eighteen years she'd been watching Obito as he stumbled through his life, trying so hard but just getting more and more lost. Now, they had a chance to live again, and live right this time. There wasn't going to be pain or suffering like before. She'd never been more grateful to be alive, despite the fact that the war was still happening. It made her sad to know that some things hadn't changed.

The Sage of Six Paths had been serious when he meant that they could live their lives again, literally sending them back to before they were even a team. She was so excited, even if she was nine again. It was okay though since her chakra reserves were still the same as when she died. She wondered how the other two were going to explain that. At least hers could be shrugged off as just extra unnoticed training.

Obito had sprinted to her house as soon as he'd woken up. They'd just stared at one another, almost not believing it was real. That is wasn't just a dream. Then they'd hugged tightly and she promised him again that she'd always be looking out for him. She would be. Always. He'd cried a little, but wiped it away, giving her a thumbs up and telling her he was off to get Kakashi.

Rin basked in the love of her mother before she left the house and took in the sights of the village with a bright smile, making her way to the training grounds to wait for Minato-sensei and her teammates. She lay back on the grass at the training ground and breathed out a happy sigh that turned into a giggle. She could hardly believe this was real. Life. Real life. She didn't care that the village was at war. No, that was a lie, she did care. But it was the furthest thing from her thoughts. Things were going to be different now.

"You seem to be having fun."

Rin sat up quickly, happy and embarrassed, to see the amused and smiling face of Minato-sensei. She forcibly held herself back from jumping up to hug him. He was exactly like she remembered. Like a warm, calming, vibrant sun. She beamed at him.

"Good morning, Minato-sensei," she said, standing up and brushing off her skirt. "I'm Rin Nohara."

"It's nice to meet you, Rin," Minato said. He looked around the training grounds. "Where are your teammates?"

Rin giggled and tapped her chin.

"Well. I'm sure they'll get here sometime," she said. "Probably something happened on the way."

Minato raised his eyebrow.

"Something like what?"

Rin frowned thoughtfully.

"Well. Probably Obito saw someone who needed help, and Kakashi, well, he tends to get lost on the road of life apparently."

Minato looked very confused, and Rin giggled.

"We're going to have some time to spare. We can use the time to get to know each other if you like?"

Minato gave her another kind smile.

"Of course," he said.

She could see he was confused and concerned, but there was little he could do about the boys being late.

"So what are your aspirations as a shinobi, Rin?" He asked.

"I want to be a medic," she said. "I want to be able to support my teammates, they definitely need it."

"A medic is a valuable member of any team," Minato said with his familiar fond and kind smile. "Were you close with Obito and Kakashi in school?"

"Obito is my best friend," Rin smiled warmly. "They were rivals, so I was always stuck between them in one way or another. But I think that's what's going to make us a great team."

"Kakashi graduated early though, so have you had much contact with him since then?"

Rin shrugged.

"No. But you don't have to worry, Minato-sensei, I think you'll be surprised by the two of them."

Again, Minato looked at her with slight confusion.

"What do you mean?"

"Secret," Rin smiled.

Minato chuckled.

"All right, I'll just have to find out for myself."

Rin rocked back and forth on her heels smiling broadly.

"So what about your family?" Minato asked. "Any brothers or sisters?"

She shook her head.

"No. It's just me and mum. She was injured a few years ago, so she works in the village mostly now."

"Ah," Minato said.

Rin cocked her head to the side.

"What about you, sensei?" She grinned cheekily. "Anyone special in your life?"

Rin was satisfied with the faint blush on his cheeks.

"Oh, no, no," he said with a little cough.

"Don't lie, Minato-sensei," Kakashi suddenly appeared beside them, nose in a book. "There's a strand of  _loooonnngg_  red hair stuck to your vest. I wonder who that belongs too."

Minato spluttered and reached around to his back. Kakashi caught Rin's eye over his book and winked. Rin giggled.

"I'm just joking, Minato-sensei," Kakashi said after a beat.

Minato swallowed and straightened up.

"Good morning, Kakashi," he said. "What are you reading?"

Kakashi gave a tired sigh.

"Nothing interesting," he said, snapping the book shut and tucking it into a pocket.

Rin watched as Kakashi turned to survey their sensei. She wondered what he was feeling. She knew they'd just fought together in a war - but sensei was dead then. Minato-sensei seemed a little disturbed at Kakashi. Rin knew he'd read the briefs about them all, and probably come across Kakashi at other times, so the Kakashi in front of him was probably baffling to him, he was so relaxed. Almost bored. It was a little baffling to her as well, she'd never known him as an adult.

"So, Kakashi," Minato said, clearing his throat. "Is there any particular reason you're late?"

"Well," Kakashi said slowly. "There was a black cat in my path. It's really bad luck so I was forced to find another route here. The short-cut I took turned out to actually be the long road. I guess you could say, I ended up lost on the road of life."

Minato looked at him with a mix of disbelief and incredulity. But Kakashi said it so seriously, it was difficult to know if he was lying or not. Rin looked between the two of them with a smile.

"That's...interesting," Minato said with a slight frown.

Kakashi shrugged as if to say, what can you do?

"Do you know if Obito also ran into this black cat?" Minato asked.

"Sorry, sensei. The last time I saw Obito, he was jumping out a window."

There was suddenly a shout from behind them, and Obito came running into the training ground, sweating and panting.

"I'm here! I'm here!"

"So you're finally here," Minato said, turning to face him with a wave and smile. "You must be Obito."

"We've been waiting for you," Rin greeted him.

"You're late," Kakashi said.

Minato turned slightly to look at Kakashi but didn't say anything.

"I'm Obito Uchiha!" He introduced himself, ignoring Kakashi. "I'm going to Hokage!"

Rin's smile softened. She remembered this, it was the same introduction as last time.

"I'm glad someone also shares my dream," Minato said. "I'm Minato Namikaze, I'll be your sensei from today onwards."

Obito gave a thumbs up.

"Awesome."

"So why were you late?" Kakashi asked, sounding bored.

"Ah, this old lady was lost so she asked for directions, and I helped to carry her bags to her home and then came running here!"

At least that was a more believable excuse than Kakashi's, although Rin knew that Obito wasn't lying. She wasn't sure what Minato-sensei thought though. He seemed bemused by the strange interactions and was eyeing Kakashi with a slight frown, which Rin knew Kakashi was purposefully ignoring.

"That was kind of you, Obito," Minato said. "Are you all ready for today?"

"Yes," Rin answered for them all. "What do you have planned?"

The three of them waited patiently but none of them were surprised by Minato taking out the bells and explaining the 'test.' In this time of war, there was no chance that three shinobi like Kakashi, Obito and Rin would be sent back to the academy.

"We're going to have our first training session together," Minato announced.

He held up his hand, and two bells on red strings dangled from it. They jingled lightly. Kakashi, Rin and Obito all glanced at each other with little smiles. Minato gave them all a smile.

"Take these bells away from me, and practice will be over," he said cheerily. "Simple, right?"

"Sure," Kakashi drawled. "What's the catch?"

Minato gave him a sharp look, but his smile never faded.

"Whoever doesn't get a bell will be sent back to the academy."

"But we're a team, Minato-sensei," Rin said.

"That's right," Obito said. "If one of us goes back, we're all going back. Right, Kakashi? Rin?"

Rin nodded. They both looked at Kakashi who gave a long-suffering sigh that made Rin really begin to understand the difference between the Kakashi she knew and the one who was an adult.

"Yeah," he said in a bored tone. "This test is about teamwork, right?"

Kakashi dodged Obito's elbow.

"So, I'm pretty sure we just passed it."

All three of them looked at Minato who was staring back with an expression of bafflement. Rin glanced at Obito, who gave her a little smile, and like always, she understood what he meant. Get ready.

"Uh, no," Minato was saying. "Words don't mean anything on the field of battle, you have to show teamwork, how else could - "

Suddenly, Kakashi was gone from beside them. Rin briefly saw Minato-sensei's eyes widen, and he had to spin and jump back to avoid the surprise attack from Kakashi. Rin barely saw Obito make any hand signs before performing the Uchiha fire jutsu, and again, Minato-sensei was forced to retreat. He put a distance of close to thirty feet between them, and Kakashi, who came back to Rin and Obito's side looked at them both. Rin felt her chest flutter with excitement.

"Ready?" He asked, the hint of a smile on his lips.

Rin nodded.

"Are you ready, Minato-sensei?" Kakashi called out to him.

"You'll have to try harder than that to beat me," Minato responded.

There was little excitement in his voice.

"Let's do this," Obito said grinning, punching one fist into his other hand.

* * *

It was far harder than Kakashi realised to hide his true skill and the range of his tactical knowledge. He had to pretend to be a child genius, and not have certain skillsets. Minato-sensei was far too perceptive and Kakashi knew that within a minute of Kakashi arriving at the training field, he'd already roused suspicion in Minato. As fresh genin, neither Obito or Rin were expected to do more than attack with taijutsu and a little ninjutsu and some weak traps. Having been a chunin for three years already, Kakashi should have been able to do more. He decided not to, and instead, the three of them chose to battle their sensei in a primarily taijutsu fight.

"He'll be harder on me," Kakashi said to the others. "He always was. So Obito, you can use that to your advantage. He won't be expecting you to have any skill whatsoever."

"Kakashi," Rin sighed tiredly.

Obito narrowed his eyes and put his goggles on.

"You're going down when we get a proper chance to spar, Bakashi," Obito said.

Kakashi gave him a lazy grin.

"Just hide your true abilities for a while. Catch him off guard." He glanced at Rin. "You ready?"

She nodded determinedly.

"Ready."

Kakashi threw shuriken at Minato-sensei who dodged them easily, and Obito and Rin attacked. Kakashi watched them all carefully, noting that Obito struggled and pulled back on several advanced moves, and he noted that Minato noticed too. As Obito attacked from on high, and Rin retreated a moment, Kakashi went low. Minato deftly avoided them both with quick spin and duck, grasping Obito's ankle and pushing him away, while at the same time pushing off Kakashi's shoulder and flipping back. Rin attacked then and Kakashi glanced at the place Minato's hand had been with an irritated frown. He'd been marked. He looked at Obito.

"Kamui would be useful," he muttered.

"But it's off limits," Obito said, looking dejected. "Stay focused. Don't do anything too obvious."

Kakashi wanted to retort and tell him that the only stupid one there was him, but he knew what Obito meant. They couldn't let their competitive natures get in the way, no matter how much fun they might end up having. Minato suddenly appeared behind Kakashi, and Kakashi turned in his crouch with his elbow high and used the momentum to continue his spin and kick out while reaching for the bells at Minato's belt with his free hand.

"Nice try," Minato said with a small smirk, as he locked eyes with Kakashi, who widened his eyes in realisation.

Moving his arm so fast it was impossible for Kakashi to do anything, and with a single palm to Kakashi chest, Minato-sensei sent Kakashi flying back and away.

"You all right, Kakashi?" Rin asked, rushing to his side.

Kakashi rubbed his chest.

"Fine," he muttered. "It's harder than I thought to be nine again."

Rin gave a little smile.

"Come on," she said, helping him to his feet. "Let's get those bells as a team."

"Good to have you back, Rin," Kakashi said softly.

Rin blinked in surprise and then hugged him. Kakashi stood there for a moment before he patted her back.

"Make a shadow clone," she whispered to him.

Kakashi's eyes widened slightly and he nodded.

"Don't move."

He brought his hands together between them and made several hand signs.

"BAKASHI! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Obito's voice rang out loudly and disbelievingly.

Rin let him go, looked into Kakashi's eyes and Kakashi nodded. It was done.

"This is a training session, you know?" Minato-sensei cleared his throat.

Rin smiled and turned around.

"We know," she said. "Obito!"

Obito frowned slightly, then he understood and with a gasp, he attacked Minato-sensei again. Kakashi and Rin watched, and when Obito was forced back by their teacher again, the ground beneath Minato's feet burst open and he looked down in shock at the Kakashi-clone that came through, before vanishing just as the clone's fingers brushed the bells. Kakashi felt the cool metal of the kunai at his throat.

"Nice attempt, Rin, Kakashi," Minato said. "But not good enough."

Kakashi smiled wryly under his mask.

"You're too fast, sensei!" Rin cried.

Obito ran over to them, and Minato removed the kunai.

"I think that's enough for today," he said with a smile. "You all passed."

Obito cheered.

"Rin, if you don't mind, I'd like a word with Obito and Kakashi alone," Minato said.

Kakashi and Obito glanced at each other wordlessly, and Rin, attempting to be guileless, smiled sweetly and nodded.

"I'll come to see you later," she promised Obito, before leaving.

Obito's cheeks blushed a faint pink and Kakashi bit back a laugh. Alone with Minato and Obito, Kakashi fell back into his slumped stance and shoved his hands in his pockets, attempted to appear relaxed, while Minato's gaze sharpened on the two of them.

"I'd like to know why the two of you were holding back today," he said.

Obito laughed, and reached behind his head, scratching it nervously.

"Holding back? Us?"

Kakashi said nothing.

"You're part of a team now, Obito. If we're going to work together, we can't have secrets, and you should know that I will find out eventually anyway."

Kakashi and Obito both knew that was true. Minato was a kind, fair, and skilled sensei, but he could be stern and hard when he needed to be. This was just a little taste of it.

"I've been training with Obito," Kakashi said. "In secret. He knew it wouldn't be on the reports you had of us, so we decided to hide it until we got the measure of you as a sensei."

"Yeah," Obito said. "Cause, you know, my clan think I'm a failure and I didn't want anyone to know just in case."

It was a pathetic excuse, but Minato seemed to buy it. Mostly. He let out a breath.

"Every shinobi develops at a different rate," he said. "You should be proud of your dedication to improving."

"Thanks, sensei," Obito said quietly.

Minato looked between the two of them again and then smiled.

"I'm glad you both get along. Please try not to be late tomorrow."

"Yes, sensei," Kakashi said.

"I'll try," Obito said.

"I'm off to report to the Hokage now. Get some rest, we've got our team photos tomorrow morning and training in the afternoon, make sure Rin knows," Minato said before he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Kakashi let out a sigh.

"This is going to be hard," he said.

Obito nodded, his expression serious.

"Do you think we should tell him?"

Kakashi looked at him like he was crazy.

"He doesn't know us or trust us. Even if we want to, we can't, not yet anyway."

"Right," Obito said grudgingly. "Anyway, I want to show you something at the academy. Meet me there later. I need a bath first." He ran off. "See ya, Kakashi!"

Kakashi watched him go through the trees, and then took his book out of his pocket and started reading. There was another couple of years to wait until Jiraiya's first book came out. Until then, Kakashi had to occupy his time in other ways. He set off walking back to the village, ignoring the strange looks he got from the people he passed by and headed home.

* * *

The Uchiha District was not where it was when Obito grew up before. Nor was there an Uchiha Police Force. It was a surprising and a little hard to wrap his head around, but Obito was quick to adapt when he had to be. So instead of running to the outskirts of the village to get home, he ran through through the center of it towards the river. The Uchiha were still in the original area they'd settled in, and Obito could only imagine they hadn't been moved because of past interventions from Kakashi's student.

Whatever the case, Obito much preferred the new (or old? He didn't know exactly how to describe it) Uchiha District. It was a nicer mix of tradition and modernity, in a calmer more natural area. He was amazed that some things were so different, but the same things remained. Like the famous Senbei shop, and the people he recognised. Obito paused in the street when he saw Fugaku and Mikoto walking together. Mikoto was heavily pregnant, and Fugaku helped her walk by offering his arm. Itachi was about to be born, and he had a lot of tumultuous feelings about it.

As Tobi/Madara, Obito had tried to kill or recruit the younger Uchiha several times and had purposefully been the one to awaken his Sharingan by killing his friend, and then there was Sasuke. Obito clenched his jaw, self-loathing washing over him, and deep remorse. Obito was good at acting, he'd had to be to pull off being Tobi/Madara. He could fool anyone into thinking he was the same kid he'd always been, but he knew that in a couple of years, Itachi would see right through him. He was like that.

"Ah, Obito."

Fugkau's deep voice cut through Obito's thoughts, surprising him. He hadn't realised they'd gotten so close to him.

"I heard today you were assigned a genin team."

Obito nodded, putting that fake smile on his face.

"Yeah!" He exclaimed. "I have the best team. Minato Namikaze is my sensei, and I get to be with Rin and Kakashi."

Mikoto gave him a kind smile. He'd always liked her. His eyes flickered to her belly.

"I'm happy for you, Obito," she said. "Minato is a good man and a good teacher, I'm sure you'll learn a lot."

Obito nodded eagerly.

"Me too."

"I hope you'll make your clan proud," Fugaku said sternly. "You're not in the academy anymore, you're not a child. You're a genin and a shinobi of Konohagakure, just as your parents were."

Obito smoothly kept his face cleared of the annoyance he felt inside.

"Don't you worry, I'll be the best Uchiha there ever was!" He said with his thumb up. "I'm going to be Hokage!"

Mikoto laughed lightly.

"That's the spirit," she said. "I hope that our child will grow to have ambitions like yours."

Obito kept smiling.

"I have a feeling your baby is going to be special," he said.

Mikoto and Fugaku shared a smile.

"You had better get home to your grandmother," Mikoto said.

Obito nodded and ran off. He was going to have to get closer to the two of them, and gain Fugaku's respect and trust, because Obito wasn't planning on being a loser this time around, and seeing Mikoto's smiling face made him realise that he had something else he needed to do. Obito needed to keep Itachi safe, and that meant he needed to know everything that was happening in the village and everything Sakura had changed.

* * *

The Hokage's hadn't changed. Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, Hiruzen Sarutobi. Kakashi stared at the stone-faces from the roof of the academy. He quickly realised he was going to have to forget the memories of his past and focus only on what this body had known. There was too much information in his head to sort through, and he would need to do a lot of research to understand the way the world had changed under Sakura and Itachi's influence. Kakashi had a hunch that more things had changed than he realised. Like there was something under the surface of it all that hadn't been noticed. After all, disposing of Zetsu didn't mean that all great evils were banished and if Kakashi assumed his hunch was right (and they usually were) something else had stepped into the role of the big bad evil. He didn't react when Obito appeared beside him. They stood together quietly for a moment.

"What did you want to show me?" Kakashi asked him.

"Follow me," he said.

They jumped down from the roof and entered the building through the front doors. The academy was one of the few places that were never really locked up or guarded. Nothing of value was kept inside, except when the students were in, and some of them used the academy grounds for extra training. Obito led him down familiar hallways until they reached the door to a classroom.

"I remembered this on the way to training," he said, pointing up.

Kakashi didn't understand what he was doing until he saw the plaque on the top of the door.

"Is that…?" He asked, his eyes widening as he read the name.

" _Sakura Room_ ," Obito read. He gave Kakashi a quick grin. "Thought you might like this."

Kakashi stared at the name for a moment and connected the room with the one he'd first met her in when she was a fresh genin.

"I bet there are lots of little things like this around town," Obito said. "Stuff we'd never really notice unless we saw it and knew what it was."

"Yeah," Kakashi said.

"I only remembered it because I have memories of looking at it almost every day and wondering who it was for," Obito said. "Guess it was pretty stupid I didn't put together it was for Sakura Uchiha."

Kakashi chuckled, slightly uncomfortable.

"I figured she'd end up with an Uchiha one day, I just thought it would be Sasuke, not Madara."

Kakashi felt Obito's mood drop. He glanced at his friend.

"Are you going to be all right with this?" He asked quietly. "You know there's going to be a lot of memories."

Obito flashed him a winning smile, reminiscent of days long passed, a perfect imitation. Kakashi sighed tiredly.

"Act for everyone else, Obito. Not me, and not Rin."

Kakashi saw Obito's jaw clench slightly, but his smile didn't fade.

"Don't worry about a thing, Bakashi. I told you already, I'm gonna be Hokage this time," Obito said.

"Good, because they almost made me Hokage and I don't want to go through that again," Kakashi sighed dramatically.

Obito stared at him blank-faced.

"I watched you enough and heard enough about you that I know you'd have been the laziest Hokage in history," he deadpanned.

Kakashi cringed away.

"Stalker," he said, looking at Obito in disgust.

"I wasn't stalking!" Obito cried in denial.

Kakashi walked off, hands loosely in his pockets.

"Yeah, you were."

"You were so lonely without me," Obito cooed, laughing a little.

Kakashi felt a small pang in his chest and paused, looking back at Obito.

"Yeah," he said. "I was."

Obito didn't reply with a sarcastic comment like Kakashi thought he might. Instead, his face took on a look more serious than he should've been able to manage at the age his body was.

"It's weird to joke about this," he said.

Kakashi nodded slowly. It was. It was still fresh, still painful. After all, they were at war only yesterday, when Obito had come back to life, they'd tried to kill each other, and then Obito had seen his mistakes, sacrificed his life and then died within a few hours. Kakashi wondered about how long it took Sakura and Itachi to adjust, but then again, their circumstances were very different to his own.

"Let's just let it go for now. We'll talk about it one day," Kakashi said after a moment.

"I'm going to poke around at the compound and try and find out everything I can about Madara and Sakura," Obito said.

"I'll come," Kakashi said.

He was very interested in finding out as much as he could about the two of them. Obito looked at him wide-eyed.

"No. No way," he shook his head. "If anyone catches us, we'll be in so much trouble."

Kakashi looked at him and rolled his eyes.

"If  _we_  get caught, then we know we have some serious training to do, don't you think?"

They walked through the front doors of the academy. Less than two days earlier, Obito and Kakashi were two of the most powerful shinobi in the world. If they couldn't sneak around undetected, they deserved to be caught. Obito reluctantly agreed with the observation.

"Right. But, look, let me do it first and figure out exactly where I can find the records. They're probably under lock and key somewhere, and we'll need to sneak around Fugaku," Obito said.

Kakashi nodded and glanced around.

"Let's not talk so openly," he said.

"So we're having our team photo tomorrow," Obito changed the subject. "I kind of liked the last one, but you looked horrible."

Kakashi hummed in acknowledgment, taking his book out from his pocket, ignoring his friend's insults. He wouldn't have looked as grumpy as he had if Obito hadn't been so late.

"I think we've gotta find a place to meet in secret, you know. Me, you and Rin. We've got a lot of stuff to talk about and plan," Obito continued.

Kakashi hummed again.

"I'll find a place," he murmured, his eyes drifting over the page. "I know lots of places to hide out."

Obito scoffed.

"Yeah, I'm sure you do."

Kakashi and Obito parted ways at the gates to the school, their homes in opposite directions.

"See ya," Kakashi said to Obito with a one-hand wave as he walked off.

"Don't be late tomorrow!" Obito called out to him.

Kakashi chuckled slightly.

"Yeah," he murmured quietly to himself. "Like you won't be."

* * *

Neither Kakashi or Obito were late to take their team photograph. Both of them strolled into the room at the exact second the clock ticked over to their appointed time. Rin greeted them both with a joyful smile.

"Yo," Kakashi greeted her.

"Hey Kakashi," Rin grinned. "You're on time!"

"You both made it without a second to spare," Minato said to them with a little smile.

Kakashi shrugged.

"Miracles happen."

Minato shook his head a little in slight exasperation, but there was a sharpness in his gaze. Kakashi guessed he was thinking that apparent complete personality switches happen too. He knew exactly what the gossip about him was, and it was usually not very nice comments about how much of stickler for the rules he was. Minato definitely knew about those rumours as well.

"Hey, Rin!" Obito said happily, stepping in front of Kakashi, who stared with annoyance at the back of Obito's head. "You look nice."

Rin blushed a little.

"Thanks, Obito," she said. "So do you. Where are your goggles?"

Kakashi sidestepped Obito and walked over to Minato, who was a few steps behind Rin.

"Take your places please," the photographer called to them tiredly.

"Ah, well, I figured if I needed to protect my eyes my goggles I wasn't a good ninja," Obito laughed.

Kakashi glanced up at Minato, who was watching Rin and Obito, and Kakashi felt a wave of happiness come over him that almost made him tear up. As if sensing Kakashi's gaze, Minato looked down and caught Kakashi staring at him, and Kakashi quickly looked away and walked over to take his place for the photo. Minato stood behind the three of them. Rin in the middle, Kakashi on the left, and Obito on the right as they faced the cameraman. Kakashi felt the warmth and firm comfort of his sensei's hand on his shoulder, and instead of staring blandly ahead, he gave a small smile as the camera flashed.

The photographer called the next team in, and Team Minato left the room, with Rin and Obito chatting animatedly with each other and at Minato, who replied with his friendly answers and a growing softness in his expression. Kakashi, who was feeling an odd mixture of happiness and sadness and nostalgia, had to look away from them for a moment. His entire life, all he'd ever wanted was to go back and fix his mistakes: to not fight with Obito all the time, to see everything he'd been missing with his teammates before it was too late, to see Minato become the best Hokage in history. To be the team they could have been. Now, at this moment, in this time and place, it was all laid out before him, thanks to some miracle he could hardly comprehend, and as much as Kakashi had dreamed of this impossible thing happening, he was afraid of it too.

"Are you all right, Kakashi?"

Kakashi looked back to see that Rin and Obito had walked off, leaving him alone with Minato. More memories flashed through his mind of his sensei, and Kakashi struggled to keep the emotion off his face. Minato looked at him with those eyes of concern, and Kakashi forced himself to swallow the lump in his throat. There was so much he wanted to say to Minato, his sensei, his hero, and the closest thing to a father after Sakumo had died.

"Kakashi?" Minato repeated his name.

Kakashi looked around. They were standing just outside the doors of the building where the photographs were being taken, and people came in and out and passed by. It was busy.

"You know, sensei, I think I feel like ramen," he said.

Minato blinked in surprise and then smiled.

"I could go for some too," he said. "Ichiraku?"

Kakashi nodded. He couldn't think of a better place to go. They walked through town together, talking quietly about topics that didn't mean much. The weather. Kakashi's favourite food. His favourite kunai. What they thought about Rin and Obito. Ichiraku was empty of other guests when they arrived, and Kakashi chose to sit in the far right corner. Minato took the stool beside him, and the young Teuchi greeted them booth with a broad and happy smile. Kakashi felt a little more settled in the familiar place, and a little more at peace that although some things were different, others were the same.

"Nice to see you here again, Minato," Teuchi greeted him. "And who might this be?"

"This is my new student, Kakashi Hatake," Minato introduced him.

Kakashi nodded to Teuchi, who continued to smile at him.

"Well, it's good to meet you, Kakashi," Teuchi said. "Since you're a student of Minato's, your first bowl is on the house."

"Teuchi, that's not necessary," Minato said. "I can pay."

Teuchi shook his head.

"No, no," he said. "Today it's on the house. But you better come back and enjoy ramen again soon."

"You know I'll be back soon," Minato smiled.

Teuchi grinned.

"I'll be right back with my special ramen," he said.

Kakashi almost teased Minato about Kushina, but he kept quiet. Soon enough Minato would introduce her to them, and then he could have as much fun as he wanted.

"So are you planning to tell me what you were thinking back there?" Minato asked when Teuchi moved away.

Kakashi didn't respond immediately, and so Minato continued.

"We don't know each other very well yet, and you might not trust me and that's all right. But I want you to know that I'm your sensei, and that means that I'll always be on your side. I'm your ally."

He was earnest and sincere and Kakashi nodded.

"Thank you, Minato-sensei," he replied.

He wondered how to proceed. He trusted Minato with his life, and he always would. But Minato didn't know him at all and too many suspicious actions or questions or comments would have to be reported to the Hokage. He was just a kid, after all. Teuchi returned and placed the two large bowls in front of them.

"Enjoy!" He said.

Minato and Kakashi thanked him.

"You know, Kakashi, you're a little different than I remember you being," Minato said, slurping lightly at his noddles.

"How so?" Kakashi asked, pulling down his mask to eat. "Is it because I grew a little taller?"

He knew it wasn't. Minato chuckled softly.

"It's not that," he replied. "You seem a little more relaxed."

Kakashi took a few bites of his noodles before he answered Minato.

"Can I tell you a secret?" He asked.

"Of course. You have my confidence," Minato replied.

"I was thinking about my father," Kakashi revealed, looking down at his ramen.

Minato waited quietly for him to continue, probably afraid to say anything that might upset him.

"I understand him." He looked at Minato. "He was a hero and I'm proud to be his son."

Minato was looking at him thoughtfully, and then he turned away and looked ahead.

"I've always believed that a shinobi is only as strong as his convictions," Minato said seriously. "Other villages call Konohagakure soft for our teachings of camaraderie, but valuing the lives of your fellow shinobi isn't a weakness."

He glanced at Kakashi, who was looking at him intently, and his gaze softened fractionally.

"To save the lives of your friends, knowing and despite the consequences, takes great strength and courage of heart and mind. Your father did what he thought was right."

Kakashi felt himself relax slightly. "Minato-sensei, I know that a shinobi must put away their emotion and complete their mission. The shinobi code is in place for our protection and the protection and safety of the village, I know that. I want to tell you something, so you know now, at the beginning."

"Please," Minato nodded.

"If I have to choose between saving my friend or completing my mission, I will choose my friend," Kakashi said firmly. "I won't lose anyone ever again."

Minato stared for a few seconds before he hesitantly reached out and patted Kakashi on the head.

"You have a good heart, Kakashi," he said. "Protect your team, that's all I could ask for."

Kakashi finished the rest of his meal in silence. Minato stretched his arms high over his head.

"Don't forget we have training at 3," he said to Kakashi, who nodded.

"Oh," Kakashi said, pulling up his mask again. "Could you do me a favour, Minato-sensei?"

"Sure," Minato replied. "What do you need?"

"Could you help me find out everything I can about Sakura Uchiha?" Kakashi asked.

Minato's brows drew together.

"Sakura Uchiha? The medic and wife of Madara?"

Kakashi nodded.

"Yep. That's the one."

Kakashi jumped off the stool and landed lightly on his feet.

"There should be plenty of information about her in the library," Minato said. "Or you could ask the Uchiha."

Kakashi, realising he needed to act like a kid, pouted a little and folded his arms over his chest.

"Yeah, but... I don't want to know the stuff they tell everyone. I want to know the stuff they don't tell anyone."

Minato frowned.

"Is there any particular reason?"

Kakashi shrugged.

"Curiosity."

"Well," Minato tilted his head thoughtfully. "I'll see what I can dig up, I suppose."

Kakashi grinned under his mask.

"Thanks. Bye, sensei!"

He waved, and then he ran off into the town, leaving Minato in the shop.

* * *

Minato watched Kakashi run off with his mouth set in a serious and thoughtful line. The last two days had been odd regarding both Kakashi and Obito, and there were questions and assumptions turning over his Minato's mind in regards to the pair. Nothing they had said or done was really that out of the ordinary, but for Minato, who had done his research on all his new students, almost everything about them was off.

Kakashi had already been an active shinobi for three years. After the death of his father, Minato knew that Kakashi had become almost obsessive about keeping to the rules, so much so that he had heard other shinobi talking about how much they disliked being in a team with him. Minato had come across him briefly a few times and had gotten the impression that Kakashi was a very serious and focused young shinobi. Lord Third had even told him to help Kakashi relax into a shinobi who understood the value of a team, not just rules. But the Kakashi that had turned up at their first team meeting was nothing like what he'd seen or heard. He was late, his body was completely relaxed and at ease, he walked without a care in the world, he worked in the team effortlessly. But there was still that very distinct shinobi look in his eye.

The thing that had most worried Minato about his new team was the reports that Kakashi and Obito were combative with each other. But from the first moments Obito arrived - also late, which Minato had expected - there was a feeling of genuine friendship between them, even with the little barbs at one another. Not to mention that Minato honestly couldn't decide if they were telling the truth about the extra training to improve Obito's skills. Because it would be clear to any good shinobi that the both of them had been holding back during the test, and the increased skills of them both didn't account for the inordinately large chakra reserves for their age. Rin was the only one of the three that was just like she was reported to be. Still, Minato decided to keep an eye on them all. There was a feeling between them, an atmosphere he wasn't sure he was imagining or not.

Despite his concerns, Minato couldn't help but already feel some kind of fondness towards the three of them. He was looking forward to seeing what they could become, and from their display of teamwork and skill the previous day, he had a hunch it would be something special. He turned to say good-bye to Teuchi, and saw the man was looking like he wanted to say something.

"Something on your mind?" He asked.

Teuchi gave him a thoughtful look.

"If the young lad is interested in Sakura Uchiha, I know someone who knows a lot about her," he said slowly. "Should I direct them to you, next time I see them?"

Minato gave a nod.

"I think Kakashi would like that," he said. "Thank you."

Teuchi nodded.

"Anything for a regular customer," he said, smiling again. "So when are you and going to come back with Lady Kushina? She always brightens up the place."

Minato smiled warmly.

"You know she can never stay away too long," he said. "I'm sure I'll see you again very soon."

"Have a good day," Teuchi said with a wave.

Minato left Ichiraku and headed over to Hokage Tower, in search of some archived files on Sakura Uchiha for Kakashi.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Two**

Whatever difficulties Kakashi had in hiding his chakra he knew that Obito was struggling more since his chakra reserves were, compared to his own, huge.

"Maybe you should think about chakra suppressants," Rin said quietly to them both after training. "You're not going to be able to keep this up."

The idea of chakra suppressants was unappealing. Both Kakashi and Obito scrunched up their noses and Rin sighed. She glanced at Minato-sensei, who was collecting his kunai a good distance from them.

"I don't think you're going to have a choice," Rin said in a firm tone.

"Yeah," Kakashi sighed and lay on his back on the grass. "You're probably right."

"This sucks," Obito pouted.

Rin sat back on her heels.

"This is more complicated than I thought it would be," she said quietly.

Kakashi frowned slightly at the tone in her voice, but it was Obito who asked her what was wrong. She looked over at their sensei again before she spoke.

"Are we really supposed to just be living? Doesn't it feel like we should be doing something more?"

"Like what?" Obito asked.

She shrugged a little helplessly.

"I don't know," she said. "We've been here for two weeks and it's just…"

"It's probably just because we're repeating what we've already lived through," Kakashi said closing his eyes and laying back against the grass. "It's not like we can do anything differently. We're just kids here for now."

"Yeah, Rin," Obito said cheerfully. "Don't worry so much. We've got a chance to do things better this time."

"I guess," Rin replied uncertainly.

Everything seemed to settle down after the first few days of their arrival. With no real need to rush anything, Kakashi finally managed to calm himself down and slowly gather information on Sakura instead of rushing around. Since he didn't have a guardian and Team Minato wouldn't be going on any missions for a while, other than training he didn't have a lot to do. He split his time between training alone, familiarising himself with the village again, and the library. Obito had told him that the Uchiha archives were stored at the temple, in a secret room only an Uchiha could gain entry into. He was sure that Fugaku would be sent to the front lines after Itachi was born, which would be any day, so it was better to wait until then before breaking in.

Kakashi had sighed with acknowledgment of his judgment. The Uchiha were protective of their secrets, and if anything went wrong, there would be serious consequences. Minato-sensei hadn't given Kakashi anything about Sakura yet either, so he'd busied himself with archives in the library. All of Sakura's many accomplishments were a source of pride for Kakashi, but they were overshadowed by his frustration at not being able to find out anything about Itachi other than that he had been a companion of Sakura's and had died, presumably in the battle against Zetsu. But there were infuriatingly little details, and many of the records of that time period were gone. There had to be records with the Uchiha about him or even secret records that Hashirama kept.

"What do you think, Kakashi?" Rin's voice broke him from his thoughts.

He opened his eyes and looked over at her.

"About what?"

She sighed.

"You weren't listening at all, were you?"

"Nope," he said.

"You know about sealing, right?" Obito said. He was sitting cross-legged and leaning over toward Kakashi. "Can you make some chakra restraining seals?"

A shadow fell over the trio and they all froze. Minato-sensei was looking down at them with a frown, his gaze sharp on Obito.

"Care to explain why you're asking Kakashi, a nine-year-old child, to make chakra-restraining seals?" He questioned firmly.

Obito chuckled nervously and Kakashi rolled his eyes a little, sitting up.

"O-oh, Minato-sensei. Didn't see you there," Obito stammered nervously.

Minato narrowed his eyes, his mouth set in a firm line and Kakashi glared at Obito for being so careless. Having Minato even more suspicious of them wasn't going to help anything.

"I mentioned I had an interest in fuinjutsu," Kakashi said after a tense moment. Minato turned his attention to Kakashi. "And Obito wanted to know if those kinds of seals would work in battles."

He tried to sound nonchalant. Obito was shooting him grateful stares and Rin had to nudge him to make him stop. Kakashi looked up at Minato.

"It's lucky you're our sensei, sensei. You're really good at fuinjutsu, right?"

Minato looked unconvinced, but his hard expression softened and Kakashi knew it was because fuinjutsu was a passion of his.

"It's not something you should attempt without instruction," Minato said. "But if you're interested, I'll be glad to set aside time to teach you."

"Thanks, sensei," Kakashi said quietly, ducking his head to hide his happiness.

Despite already being taught the art by Jiraiya, learning it from Minato meant a lot more to him.

"Ooooh, Kakashi's blushing!" Obito mocked.

"Oh, Obito, don't tease him," Rin chastised.

Kakashi clenched his jaw.

"Shut up," he mumbled. "I am not."

Obito clutched his stomach with laughter.

"You're so red!" He said between laughs.

Rin gave Kakashi an apologetic but amused grin and Kakashi just huffed in annoyance. Minato chuckled as well.

"All right, Obito. Settle down," he said. Obito's laughter died away as Minato continued to talk. "Well, Team Minato. So far, you've exceeded my expectations. Rin, Obito, even though you've both only just graduated from the academy, you've both shown exceptional adaptability and determination. All of you have shown good teamwork."

The three waited for what he would say next. This was usually the kind of speech Kakashi gave before he'd tell Team 7 they were going on a mission.

"I'm going talk to the Hokage about having you guys assigned to some D-rank missions," he said.

It wasn't a surprise, but it was hard to fake enthusiasm at the announcement. D-ranks were extraordinarily tedious and easy missions.

"That's great sensei!" Rin said with a smile.

"In-village only?" Kakashi asked, unable to mask his disappointment.

"You should know, Kakashi, that training is nothing like real missions. Don't forget that Obito and Rin don't have the same experience as you do."

Kakashi couldn't help but give Obito a gloating look, and Obito gave a  _tch_  and folded his arms over his chest.

"He's not that great, sensei," Obito said through jutted teeth. "He's always late and he reads pervy books even though he's just a kid!"

Kakashi choked on his cough. Rin's eyes widened and she looked between the two of them. Obito set his mouth in a smug line.

"Well, you're always late too!" Kakashi retorted.

"See Rin, he didn't deny it. I told you he was a closet pervert," he whispered to Rin, who giggled.

Kakashi couldn't hide his embarrassed blush since it wasn't entirely untruthful. Minato cleared his throat.

"That's enough, Obito," he said, frowning. "Why don't you and Rin head on home and get some lunch. I'll have a talk to Kakashi."

Kakashi sighed and lay back heavily on the grass.

"See ya, Bakashi!" Obito called with amusement, taking Rin's hand. "Come on, Rin. Let's go get some food."

"Okay! Bye Kakashi," Rin waved.

Kakashi raised his hand lazily.

"See ya."

Minato sat down beside Kakashi and looped his arms around his knees. The afternoon wind blew around them, carrying the scents of the grass and trees.

"You know, sensei, even if I wanted to I couldn't buy a pervy book. I'm nine, you know."

Minato breathed a laugh.

"That's not what I wanted to talk about," he said.

Kakashi opened an eye and peered up at him for a moment before sitting up and crossing his legs.

"I really wasn't lying about being interested in fuinjutsu," Kakashi mumbled.

"I know," Minato replied. "I meant what I said when I'd teach you."

"But you don't…" Kakashi trailed off, unsure how to go on. He let out a tired sigh. "It's hard being nine," he said eventually.

Minato glanced at him.

"But you're not a normal nine-year-old, are you?"

Kakashi looked at him questioningly, panic rising for a moment before he heard what Minato said next.

"Even I didn't graduate from the academy as young as you did," Minato said with a smile. "You're special, Kakashi."

Kakashi let out a small scoff.

"I'm not that special. Your academy scores are unbeatable," he replied, pulling up some grass. "Obito's the special one. He's going to be Hokage, you know, you'll have to work hard."

Minato laughed at that.

"I can only hope that a student of mine would be worthy enough to take that role," he said with a smile. "What about you, Kakashi? What is it that you want?"

Kakashi twisted his lips under his mask in thought.

"Hashirama Senju was the Hokage that built the village, and Tobirama continued his legacy," he said slowly. "But I don't want to be Hokage, it doesn't suit me. I'm fine with being able to protect my friends."

"Like Madara then," Minato said.

Kakashi whipped his head to Minato, eyes wide and surprised. Minato frowned.

"You don't know about Madara Uchiha?"

Kakashi shook his head.

"Madara declined to be Hokage after Hashirama died in the First Shinobi War," Minato said. "Tobirama took up the mantle instead. It's said that Madara and Hashirama were great friends, and Madara respected Tobirama until they both died. He remained working to secure Konoha behind the scenes, protecting his family, his village, and taking on the role of a second Hokage in some ways. When Tobirama wasn't around, it was Madara the village looked too."

Kakashi stared at Minato in shock. He'd been so focused on Sakura he'd barely discovered anything about Madara. He should've been more interested. Sakura never would have married him if he was evil, that Kakashi knew for certain.

"I didn't realise," Kakashi said quietly.

"No, you've been curious about his wife, haven't you?"

Kakashi nodded.

"Well, I found out something," Minato said. "Would you care to hear it?"

Kakashi nodded eagerly. Minato's brow creased in a troubled frown.

"It's not much."

"It doesn't matter," Kakashi said.

"No, Kakashi. I mean that there's not much to find out. It seems that the files pertaining directly to her have been moved, lost or are above my security clearance."

"What?" Kakashi asked, his frown matching Minato's.

"What I did find was a basic personnel file, it had a photograph attached. They let me take it, so I brought it home. Would you like to come and read it yourself?"

"Yes," Kakashi said firmly. "I would."

* * *

Minato Namikaze lived alone, but not by choice. If he had his way, Kushina Uzumaki would be his wife already and they'd be living together. Unfortunately, the war had been causing delays in their plans. Both of them were important assets to the village and were often sent out to the front lines. Thankfully, since Minato had been assigned as a jonin leader, and Kushina was being kept in the village to 'protect' her more often than not, they were seeing a lot more of each other. He knew that Kushina was visiting Mikoto, however, and would be unlikely to pop in unexpectedly as she was prone to do.

Minato glanced at Kakashi, who was walking with his head in a book of shinobi philosophy. Kakashi's unwavering interest in Sakura Uchiha had been strange to Minato at first, but after finding close to nothing about her in the official records, Minato's own interest had been peaked. For someone that had been so important to the village from the beginning, it was strange, especially considering there were still files about Hashirama, Tobirama, and Madara to be found, although Minato had noticed that Madara's files also held much less than the Senju's.

He didn't know the reason why Kakashi was so interested in her, but he was certain it was more than mere curiosity. Kakashi never did anything without a reason, and he was a surprisingly skillful liar for being so young. In time, he hoped Kakashi would confide in him, but for the present, Minato questioned whether or not he ought to warn Kakashi about one particularly important detail in Sakura Uchiha's file that also affected him personally.

They ascended the stairs to Minato's small flat. He could afford a bigger place but was waiting until he and Kushina could find one together and lived as a happily married couple. Despite them living apart, his house was still filled with touches of Kushina and from Kakashi's comment on the first day they met, his student was aware of his relationship with her and shouldn't be too surprised by the fluffy pink cushions and other very feminine touches around the apartment. Minato underestimated Kakashi propensity to tease - something he was still getting used to since many of Kakashi's comments he'd expect from someone far older than the boy actually was.

"I didn't know you were so into interior decoration, Minato-sensei," Kakashi commented, eying the cushions and blankets Kushina had picked out to 'brighten the place up.'

Minato smiled bashfully.

"Kushina likes to decorate," he murmured.

Kakashi snapped his book shut and tucked it in his pocket.

"It's homey," he replied, and Minato could hear that he meant it.

Minato closed the door behind them.

"Come inside and take a seat. I'll make us some tea and we can talk about that file."

"Right, sure," Kakashi replied.

Minato waited for the kettle to boil with a whistle and screech and poured the tea for them both before carrying it out into the living room. Kakashi was standing awkwardly by the couch, seemingly unsure what to do. Minato gave him a small smile.

"Why don't you sit down, Kakashi," he suggested. "The file is right on the coffee table there."

Kakashi gave a small nod of his head and eyed the file before he sat and left the file untouched. Minato placed the tea on the table and sat across from his student. Kakashi sat, unlike his usual relaxed posture, upright and tense. Minato's brow creased in a frown, wondering why Kakashi seemed nervous. Minato was beginning to understand that when it came to Kakashi and Obito, there was always more than what you saw on the surface. For two nine-year-olds, they acted remarkably like seasoned shinobi. Once he might have thought that Kakashi was just nervous being in his sensei's home, but now he imagined it was something deeper, and he had a suspicion that Sakura Uchiha was the key to unlocking the strange atmosphere around his trio of students.

"So," he said a little cautiously. "How do you feel being part of a team?"

Easy conversation was usually a good way to get someone to trust and open up.

"It's…" Kakashi trailed off, looking away for a moment. Minato waited. "Everything I ever wanted," Kakashi replied, sincerity ringing through in his voice.

Minato wondered how lonely he'd been since his father had passed and he'd left school. He was still just a child, and Minato had to squash the urge to hug him. Kakashi turned to Minato, his eyes crinkling and glinting with cheek.

"So, sensei, what about you? How do you like your team?"

Minato chuckled.

"It's everything I ever wanted," he replied, equally sincere.

He did feel that way, despite his reservations and questions. Rin was sweet and but strong-willed, Obito was a revelation and Kakashi had proven himself to be as surprising as he was powerful, yet he felt that all four of them shared a connection that grew deeper each day. He glanced down at the file and Kakashi's gaze followed him.

"About that file" Minato started cautiously. He looked back up at Kakashi. "There's something… well, I think I'll let you read it alone. I'll be on the balcony if you want to discuss it."

"Okay," Kakashi said, sounding slightly confused.

Minato took his tea from the table and walked through the door, closing it behind him, and let out a sigh, hoping Kakashi wouldn't be too affected.

* * *

Kakashi picked up Sakura's file once he heard the balcony door slide shut. Minato had seemed hesitant and uncertain, which wasn't like him, and that filled Kakashi with some trepidation about what the contents of the file were. He swallowed and flipped open the first page. Stuck to the outer corner with a clip was a photograph of Sakura. She was smiling. A little older than he remembered her, but still very much as she always was. Bright and cheerful. Kakashi felt a fond and nostalgic smile spread across his own face beneath the mask. Then he read the contents. Minato was right, it was a basic personnel file, but Kakashi was fascinated with what it said.

_Name: Sakura Uchiha_

_Gender: Female_

_Birthday: March 28_

_Deathday: October 10 (unconfirmed exact date)_

_Height: 165 cm_

_Weight: 47kg_

_Blood-type: O_

_Classification: Sage, Medic-nin_

_Occupation: Head Medic, Doctor, Konoha Council Member_

_Affiliation: Konohagakure, Shikkotsu Forest_

_Team/s: Medic-corps, Team Yuri, Team Tobirama, Pursuit Unit_

_Clan: Nara Clan, Uchiha Clan_

_Ninja Rank: Jonin_

_Ninja Registration: 004_

_Family: Shikaru Nara (father), Shikata Nara (brother), Madara Uchiha (husband), Izara Uchiha (son - deceased, illness), _ (—) , _ Uchiha (daughter)_

_Chakra Nature: Water Release, Earth Release, Yin Release, Yang Release_

_Jutsu: medical ninjutsu specialist, taijutsu specialist, senjutsu_

_*Honoured Death:_

_Lady Sakura Uchiha died in the field during the beginning of the Second Shinobi War at age 59, saving the lives of three genin and chunin Konoha shinobi after the village received intelligence they would be caught in an ambush. Against orders, she left the village and used herself as bait so they could get away safely._ _The shinobi whose lives she saved were Chiaki Shirunai, Saito Wazashi and Sakumo Hatake, all 14 at the time._

Kakashi slowly read over the final paragraph three times before he closed the file and put it on the coffee table. He sat back, staring for a moment, and then let out a long breath before pulling his legs up to his chest and hugging his knees. His chest felt a little hollow at the words. All hopes he had of maybe, maybe Sakura being alive somehow were dashed, but at the same time, how she died struck him hard. She died saving his father. Kakashi wasn't blind to what that meant. It meant that little Sakura, the girl he'd seen grow up from a lovesick little girl to one of the strongest shinobi in the world, gave her life to make sure he'd have one. Kakashi felt tears form in his eyes. He cursed, but couldn't stop them from falling. His emotional response control was lacking in his small, immature body.

He heard the door to the balcony slide open and click shut. He didn't raise his head or make a comment when Minato sat beside him on the couch. If it were anyone else, he would never have shown so much emotion. But when Minato placed a comforting hand on Kakashi's head, Kakashi trembled and cried quietly, feeling like he really was nine. Minato never said a word. He probably thought that Kakashi was crying for his father. Kakashi was happy to let him think that, it as better than the truth. Minato didn't need to know that, not just yet. It wasn't the right time. Kakashi took a few deep breaths and wiped his eyes on his pants. Minato removed his hand, and Kakashi frowned and put his legs down, reaching for the file again.

"Her children," he said, his voice a little raspy as his throat hurt. "Why are they blacked out?"

He showed the file to Minato.

"I don't know," Minato replied. "I wondered the same thing myself."

"Are they alive?" Kakashi wondered.

Minato pursed his lips.

"I think this is something you'd have to ask the Uchiha," he said.

Kakashi sniffed and crinkled his nose under his mask.

"They won't tell outsiders anything," he muttered.

Minato smiled and ruffled Kakashi's hair.

"Maybe not," he said. Kakashi smoothed out his hair. "But they might if we ask nicely."

Kakashi looked at Minato in surprise, pleased, but then suspicious of his motivations.

"We might have to wait a little while though," Minato said with a frown. "Since Mikoto is likely to have her baby any day. Fugaku won't want to deal with anything that might be sensitive information until he's calmer."

"Right," Kakashi said slowly. "So you're helping me find out about Sakura… because you're curious?"

Minato looked at him funnily.

"Kakashi, don't you think it's strange that this file is the only thing accessible about her?" He asked. "History books are easily censored, you know that. So, yes. I'm curious. I'm curious about how one of the founders of the village has been almost completely erased from the records."

Kakashi had to admit that it was a reasonable curiosity, and knowing how meticulous and hungry for knowledge Minato was, now that he had his nose to the scent of something, there was nothing Kakashi or anyone could do to stop him. That was both good and bad and gave Kakashi conflicted feelings about the situation. He needed to talk to Obito and Rin.

"D-ranks?" Kakashi asked after a moment.

His attempt to change the subject was not subtle and wasn't unnoticed by Minato, but his sensei didn't say anything more about Sakura or the Uchiha. Instead, he chuckled.

"I know you've been out on missions," he said, slightly apologetically. "It'll be less challenging for you. But Obito and Rin need the experience."

Kakashi snorted louder than he meant to and Minato took it differently than he meant it.

"Don't scorn your teammates," he said with a slight frown. "You guys might have shown remarkable progress, but you're all in need of development before you're ready."

"I didn't mean it as scorn," Kakashi mumbled. "I was just thinking that you're underestimating us."

Minato raised an eyebrow.

"Is that so?"

"I guess you'll find out," Kakashi replied, standing. He glanced at the file. "Thanks for showing me that. I guess if it wasn't for Lady Sakura I wouldn't be here, huh?"

Minato's lips twitched.

"I suppose," he replied. "I'll let you know in a few days about the fuinjutsu lessons."

Kakashi nodded.

"Thanks, Minato-sensei."

* * *

"I wonder if Kakashi's in trouble," Rin asked worriedly.

Obito shrugged.

"He'll be fine," he said.

The pair were sitting together on the top of the great stone carving of the First Hokage's head, looking over the village and eating riceballs.

"Bakashi knows Minato-sensei is already suspicious of us," he continued. "It's not like we're going to be able to hide it from him for much longer. He's way too smart."

Rin nodded in agreement.

"But he's going to be called to the front a lot. That's what happened last time too."

Obito sat cross-legged and looked down toward the Hokage Tower.

"We don't have just Minato-sensei to worry about," he said quietly. "We've got to keep Lord Third away too."

Rin grimaced.

"So," she asked. "Is it weird, or have you gotten used to it?"

"What?" Obito asked with a frown.

"Being a grown-up in a kids body," she smiled. "It's okay for me. I'm technically only a couple of years older. But you had a whole life."

Obito winced.

"I wish you'd stop talking about you dying," he muttered quietly.

"Why?" Rin asked, tilting her head and peering at him. "I did die. It wasn't anyone's fault, and if it was, it was mine. I was the one who got captured. If I didn't put myself in the way of Kakashi's chidori, I would've been the reason the village was destroyed."

Obito looked away and clenched his jaw tightly.

"You can't hide from it, Obito," Rin said, her voice a little softer. "Starting over can't mean forgetting. You have to accept what happened and what you did."

Obito flinched.

"Accept what I did?" He asked her, incredulously. "You have no idea what I did."

Rin narrowed her eyes and looked at him sternly.

"I saw it all. I told you I was watching over you," she said. "You and Kakashi might have had whole lives and been together at the end, but that doesn't mean you can shut me out of this." Her eyes turned sad. "He didn't see you as I did," she whispered. "Alone in the dark... in pain."

Obito had never felt more exposed in front of another person before. He felt hollowed out by her words, and remember things he wanted to shut out. Rin put her hand on his arm.

"Obito, I never turned away," she said quietly. "I was waiting for you to find the right path again, and you did."

He shook his head.

"Rin, you're still.." He swallowed. "You're still a kid."

She pulled back her hand.

"You might have thought differently if you got to grow-up more."

Obito wasn't expecting the red cheeks, angry, wet eyes and trembling fists. He looked at her with surprise.

"Don't treat me like I'm an ignorant child!" She said loudly with frustration.

"Rin, I didn't - "

She stood and packed up her food.

"Do you think I wanted to die?" She asked, standing and holding her pack to her chest.

Obito blinked and stared at her. He'd never seen her look so hurt before.

"Do you think I spent eighteen years watching over you and never grew up? That I didn't see the world and understand it in ways you never did?" She sniffed and angrily wiped the tears that fell. "Don't treat me like a kid, Obito."

Then she jumped down from the First's head and disappeared into the village. Obito watched her go, sinking into a dark mood. He drew his knees up and wrapped his arms around them, his jaw clenched shut tightly. He couldn't stop the memories of seeing Rin die. Over and over again he saw it replay in his mind. The look on Kakashi's face, the blood, the rage and despair he felt. He hung his head low, trying to steady his rapid, uneven breaths. He held his hands tightly together, almost crushing them in his own grip. His eyes were squeezed tightly closed.

It took another ten minutes to calm himself. He thought back to Rin's original question, was he used to being a kid again? He shook his head slightly, wondering if he was used to it. Sometimes it was fun being a child and forgetting about everything else. Other times he felt like he didn't belong in his body. He guessed that would change as he grew older, but until then, he was still adapting. He didn't have a choice and didn't see the point in dwelling over it. Obito looked up at the sky and then fell back, laying across Hashirama's head and stared at the clouds. He stayed there until the sun began to set when he finally stood and packed his own bag away. He jumped down off the head and into the village, toward Kakashi's house instead of his own. He didn't feel like going home, even though he knew his grandmother would be getting worried.

Kakashi opened his front door before Obito had a chance to knock.

"Rin came by before," Kakashi said casually, closing the door behind Obito.

Obito dumped his bag by the door and took a seat at the dining table. Kakashi didn't say anything else. He finished cooking dinner. Two servings were prepared and Obito almost scoffed at Kakashi's annoying perceptive and predictive abilities.

"Is she okay?" Obito asked quietly.

Kakashi looked at him.

"She's determined. She has her own plans."

Obito glanced up with interest before picking up his chopsticks and digging into the food. Kakashi slipped his mask down and ate while he talked.

"Since she wants to be a medic, she's going to find someone to apprentice to in the hospital, and find someone who knew Sakura."

"That's a good idea," Obito said between bites. "What did Minato-sensei want?"

Kakashi sighed.

"He found out some interesting things about Sakura," he said.

"Like what?"

"Someone has taken, moved, destroyed or classified everything about her," Kakashi said. Obito raised an eyebrow. "There's nothing in the records, just a basic personnel file."

"That's…odd," Obito conceded.

Kakashi nodded.

"But there were some interesting things in it," he said, a small smile on his lips.

"Like what?" Obito repeated.

"Well, our other memories already knew she was a Sage," Kakashi said, a hint of pride in his eyes.

Obito shook his head in disgust.

"You're so gross," he muttered, disgusted and envious.

Kakashi ignored him.

"She had three children - one died of illness." He looked away. "The other two… their names were blacked out."

"Blacked out?" Obito's interest was peaked.

"The name and gender of one of them were completely blacked out, and just the first name of the daughter was removed," Kakashi said.

"So we know she had at least one daughter."

"And a son, who died of an illness," Kakashi said.

"And a mystery third child," Obito frowned. "Why would they do that?"

Kakashi was quiet, looking at his food but not eating it.

"I don't know, but I can't imagine it's a good reason," he said.

Obito agreed although he didn't want it to be true, for Kakashi's sake.

"Are they alive?"

"According to the file," Kakashi answered.

"You want to find them?" Obito asked.

"Don't you?" Kakashi questioned. "You're an Uchiha, didn't you know she had children? Don't you know anything about them? They're Madara's kids too, surely the clan knows something."

Obito took a breath and searched his memories.

"Everyone talks about Madara and Sakura, but never the kids," he said, grimacing. He tilted his head. "It's like there's a gag order."

Kakashi looked disappointed.

"There probably is. Well, now Minato-sensei's interested too."

Obito rolled his eyes.

"Great," he said sarcastically. "If Minato starts asking questions, the clan's going to get suspicious."

"He said after Itachi is born we'll ask Fugaku directly," Kakashi told him.

Obito felt like smacking his palm to his forehead.

"That's a bad idea. Fugaku isn't going to reveal clan secrets."

"Not to us, but maybe he will to Minato. They're friends, remember?"

"I guess," Obito sighed.

He pushed the food on his plate around moodily. Silence fell between them. Kakashi continued to eat

"If you're so upset, why don't you just go and apologise to her?" Kakashi said.

Obito glared.

"Shut up."

Kakashi shrugged and finished off his food, wiped his face and pulled his mask back up.

"Are you done with that?" He pointed at the half-eaten food.

"No."

Obito pulled the plate protectively toward him. Obito watched as Kakashi pottered around in his kitchen, oddly domestic.

"Who do you think moved the files about her?" He asked.

Kakashi paused and turned, leaning on his kitchen counter. He tried to put his hands back behind him but realised he was too short. A look of annoyance passed over his face, and Obito was slightly amused at the action as well. Kakashi folded his arms over his chest.

"Well. It depends on who knew she was from the future," he said. "I would assume Madara knew. Probably the First and Second Hokage as well. She would have trusted them, and she definitely would have been trying to protect herself in the future as well."

"But the people who knew her are still going to be alive," Obito said.

A shadow crossed over Kakashi's face.

"We're going to need to find out who knew her, and keep an eye on some people."

Obito nodded.

"Orochimaru," he said with some disgust.

"And Danzo," Kakashi said darkly.

Obito felt a rush of loathing rush over him for the man. He didn't know what Danzo was like in this timeline, but he knew exactly what Danzo had done before. Both he and Kakashi looked at each other with determined and knowing gazes.

"I think we should put aside our Sakura investigation for now," Obito said quietly. "We have to put down dogs like those two before they can bite."

Into the night, Kakashi and Obito spoke quietly and planned how to take care of the two biggest threats to Konoha, until their nine-year-old bodies were too tired to stay awake and they fell asleep.

* * *

Beside the open file of Sakura Uchiha on his coffee table, Minato had several books and scrolls scattered around. All opened to sections that mentioned Sakura and Madara, and it was all generic information, repeating the same thing over and over.

Sakura Uchiha was one of the founders of Konoha. A great friend to Hashirama Senju, Tobirama Senju and Madara Uchiha. She was adopted by the Nara before she married Madara. Before she met the Senju and Uchiha, Sakura was a traveling shinobi tracking a threat to the shinobi world. Her companion, who is always unnamed, died alongside Izuna Uchiha, in a battle against this threat. Sakura became one of the first council members, started the hospital and revolutionised medic-nin and medical ninjutsu. She was a war hero, also known as Sakura the Slug Sage, The Pink Iron Fist of Konoha. There was nothing about her life, about the children she had, nothing except what everyone knew.

Minato pursed his lips in thought. He was never good at sitting back and doing nothing, his mind was constantly working in some form or another. He questioned whether to approach Lord Third with his queries and then decided against it, for the time being at least. If there was something underhand going on in the village, he either knew about it and was in on it, or didn't know about it at all. Minato didn't want to cause disruptions while the village was at war. Instead, he decided on another path. His mentor, Jiraiya, had certainly grown up in the village while Sakura was alive. Surely he would be able to tell Minato more since there was a high level of trust between them.

Minato cleared the books on the table, stacking them neatly into piles on the floor by the wall, and closed the file pertaining to Sakura. He crouched down and gathered his chakra to perform the summoning jutsu. With a small pop, a toad appeared on his floor.

"Hello, Minato, sir!" The toad saluted cheerily.

Minato smiled.

"Good evening, Kosuko," he said. "Thank you for coming."

"You summon, I appear!" Kosuko said. "What can I do for you?"

"I want to send a message to Jiraiya," Minato said. "Can you deliver it for me?"

"No problems," Kosuko said.

"Thank you."

Minato quickly scribbled the note on a small scroll and handed it over to the messenger toad.

"See you, Minato sir!"

Kosuko disappeared with a pop and Minato sat back against his couch for a moment, glancing at the closed file on his coffee table. He had a hunch that something was happening in the world. His hunches were usually right. Later that night, the sound of a small pop woke Minato from his restful sleep, kunai in hand, body tense and alert, eyes sharp.

"Woah, woah, Minato sir! It's just me."

Kosuko ducked with his webbed hands over his head. Minato let out a sigh.

"Sorry," he mumbled tiredly.

He blinked and lowered his kunai, and Kosuko sat up again.

"What are you doing here?" Minato asked, yawning.

"I have a message from Jiraiya," Kosuko said, his usually jovial tone turning serious.

Minato peered at him and then leaned over and switched on the lamp beside his bed. Kosuko held out a scroll to Minato.

"Jiraiya wanted me to tell you that you should stop looking into Sakura Uchiha immediately," Kosuko said. "He was very serious about it."

Minato swallowed and nodded, the small scroll in his hands feeling more weighted by the second. For Jiraiya to say that meant that all his suspicions were confirmed.

"Thank you, Kosuko."

"He told me to stay here until you read the scroll and then report what you said back to him," Kosuko said.

"So, he's very serious then," Minato murmured.

Kosuko didn't reply. Minato unfurled the scroll.

_Minato. Destroy this note after you've read it. Speak to no one about this. Don't ask questions. Don't let anyone know you've looked into her. You don't know who might be watching. Wait for me to return, and whatever happens, whatever questions you have, keep Kakashi and Obito safe and stop them from trying to find anything out about Sakura._

Minato read over the note twice before destroying it in a small burst of fire chakra in his palm.

"Tell Jiraiya I understand," Minato told Kosuko.

Kosuko nodded and disappeared again. Minato sat up in his bed, now fully awake and filled with heavy thought, concern, and confusion. He threw back the covers of his bed and got up and dressed. He glanced at his clock. It was an hour before sunrise. He went into his living room and collected Sakura's file. Whoever Jiraiya was concerned about surely knew that Minato had taken the file, and if they didn't, they would soon.

Stealthily and silently, Minato ran through the village to return the file, keeping to the shadows of the buildings and out of sight of the patrols. He sensed no one following or watching him, and dropped from the rooftop across from Hokage Tower to the ground. He walked lightly to the first floor, nodded at the sleepy guards, and entered the building. With little difficulty, Minato replaced the file and exited the building. To be sure he wasn't followed, Minato made a loop around the entire village. Satisfied he was alone, Minato headed back to his house and began to meditate on everything that had happened, everything Kakashi and Obito had said, since the day they met. He was going to figure out what was going on, one way or another.


	4. Chapter 4

 

**Chapter 3**

Kakashi was ashamed to admit that he squealed like the little kid he apparently was when he saw Minato suddenly appear on his windowsill. Obito blinked tiredly, woken by the sound, and Kakashi was only grateful that he hadn't heard the shameful noise, or realised what it was if he had. Minato quietly opened the window and jumped inside Kakashi's apartment.

"Wha - what's happening?" Obito mumbled sleepily.

Kakashi, who had recovered from his shock, got to his feet and kicked Obito awake.

"Obito," he hissed. "Sensei is here."

Minato was watching the two of them with a mixture of disapproval and amusement.

"Uh - sensei?" Obito asked groggily, wiping his eyes. "Don't kick me, Bakashi," he muttered.

He blinked and looked around, and Kakashi could only sigh when Obito startled at seeing Minato in Kakashi's apartment.

"Ah, G-good morning, Minato-sensei," Obito said, panicked. "Are we late for something?"

Minato finally relaxed into a smile.

"No," he said. "I wanted to talk to you both. But, before that - "

Kakashi watched with faint amusement as Minato put his hands on his hips, his smile disappeared and he looked at them both with disapproval.

"Sleeping on the floor is bad for your health. You should know better. You'll get sick," he scolded them.

"Sorry, sensei," Kakashi and Obito mumbled apologies.

Kakashi looked up at him and grinned under his mask.

"You'll be a good dad one day," Kakashi said.

"Yeah," Obito agreed. "You will. I bet you'll protect your kids with all you've got."

Kakashi glanced at Obito, who had the face of a naive child on. He knew that it was an act to show how he was feeling, since Obito was the one that prevented Minato from being a father to Naruto in the past, and knew exactly how far Minato would go. Kakashi felt a sliver of old anger, but he pushed aside. Minato blushed, surprised and pleased, his cheeks pink, and scratched the back of his head.

"Well, ah, thanks, I guess," he laughed nervously.

"Want some breakfast?" Kakashi asked.

Obito groaned.

"Not if there's any eggplant or mackerel."

Kakashi gave him a look of annoyance.

"If you don't like my food then don't eat it," he retorted.

"You should have more variety in your diet," Obito snapped back. "You're so weird. Who even likes eggplant?"

"I bet you don't even know how to cook, grandma's boy."

"I do so!" Obito denied.

"Do not."

"I do - "

Minato put his hands on their shoulders.

"Why don't you guys sit and listen to what I have to say, and then I'll take you both out for breakfast?"

Kakashi and Obito glanced at each other and then nodded.

"Sounds good to me," Kakashi said.

They all sat at Kakashi's kitchen table. Obito stifled a yawn and Kakashi rubbed his face tiredly, taking a peek at the clock. It was early, he kicked Obito lightly under the table, and Obito glanced at the clock too. They shared a look of concern.

"Sorry for waking you both," Minato apologised. "But there's something I need to discuss with you."

Kakashi tried not to show his anxiety on his face, but he knew his body was giving something away. As good as an actor Kakashi was, Obito was much, much better. He looked every bit the innocent and naive nine-year-old he pretended to be.

"Is something wrong?" Kakashi asked. "You're making me nervous."

Minato looked conflicted, and that made Kakashi worry even more. Minato breathed quickly in and then out.

"I want you both to stop looking into Sakura Uchiha," he said in a voice lower, quieter and more stern than usual. The two of them kept quiet and waited. "This is a request from me. Can you do this?"

"But why?" Obito asked with confusion. "What's the problem trying to find out more about the people who made our village?"

Minato gave a strained smile.

"There's nothing wrong with that," he said.

"Minato-sensei," Kakashi leaned forward and peered at him. "What's wrong? What happened?"

Minato blinked in surprise.

"What makes you ask that?"

Kakashi gave him a tired look.

"Sensei, you asked me to trust you. So I will, we'll stop looking into Sakura."

They had planned on doing so anyway, for the time being at least. The state of the village at the present was taking precedence.

"Thank you," Minato said, sounding a little relieved.

"But you came here really early to tell us this, and you are really serious about it, so you have to tell us why," Kakashi said firmly.

Minato looked between the two of them and then breathed a chuckle.

"Looks like I'm going to have my hands full with the pair of you, aren't I?" His lips twitched in a smile and then it fell. "Just like you have me as a sensei, I had a sensei as well. He grew up in the village when Sakura was still alive, and I sent him a message, asking about her."

"That's Jiraiya, isn't it?" Obito asked. "He's the Toad Sage."

Minato nodded, clearly surprised.

"He is. Well done for knowing that, he's not often in the village."

"Yeah, but, he's famous," Obito shrugged. "A Sannin. Everyone knows them."

"So what did he say?" Kakashi questioned.

"He said to stop and wait until he came back to the village," Minato said. "It's important that we follow his instructions."

Obito narrowed his eyes thoughtfully at Minato.

"You think something bad will happen if we don't, don't you?"

"I think that there are some things in which a student must obey their master, and this is one of those cases," Minato said in a commanding manner. "I don't want to hear another word spoken about Sakura Uchiha from either of you until Jiraiya-sensei returns to the village. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sensei," they replied in unison.

Minato nodded.

"Well, good. Now, are you hungry?" He asked.

"Yep!" Obito nodded eagerly.

Kakashi pushed back his chair and jumped off onto the ground.

"Obito, you better go home first. Your grandma is probably worried."

Obito's eyes widened in realisation.

"Obito, you didn't let her know you weren't coming home yesterday?" Minato asked, disapproval clear in his voice. "Both of you, wash your faces and clean up a little. We're all going to go and apologise for worrying her."

Both Kakashi and Obito groaned and mumbled, but did as Minato said. Secretly pleased at the attention, but feeling pathetic about it at the same time.

"You're a grown man, Obito, pull yourself together," Kakashi whispered to him when they went to wash their faces.

Obito turned to him in disbelief.

"You can't talk, Kakashi. You're so happy you're blushing." He made a sound of disgust. "What is with you? I preferred the snotty version of you."

"It's not my fault, this stupid child body is hard to get used too," Kakashi hissed.

Obito scoffed.

"Yeah, right."

He pulled one of Kakashi's spare, clean shirts over his head.

"You're not even trying. You're really taking this freedom to be a kid again thing too far."

Kakashi and Obito bickered all the way to Obito's grandmother's house, and Minato followed them with some exasperation. Kakashi grinned under his mask, and he saw the enjoyment in Obito's eyes. They would die before they admitted that this bickering was little more than an expression of their affection for one another and that they'd missed it over the years. But they both knew it was true. At the very least, they were certainly acting the age they looked, and that was always a good thing.

* * *

Kakashi sat between Rin and Obito and pulled grass out of the ground. Rin was hugging her knees to her chest with her chin firmly planted on her knees, a pouting, angry expression on her face. Obito's lips were twisted in displeasure, and his legs were crossed and arms folded over his chest. Minato was looking at Kakashi for help, but Kakashi could only sigh and pull up more grass. He watched as his sensei tried to diffuse the situation.

"Rin," Minato said slowly. "It seems like something is bothering you."

"It is," she replied shortly.

"Do you…want to talk about it?" He asked hesitantly.

"No."

The answer came swift and sure. Minato seemed at a loss. Kakashi continued to sigh.

"Did you have an argument with Obito?" He asked.

Rin glared up at him.

"I said I didn't want to talk about it."

Minato took a step back.

"Okay, Rin. Sorry."

He looked over at Obito.

"Obito. Will you tell me what happened?" He pleaded. "If you guys don't talk about it, it's not going to go away."

Obito peeked over at Rin, who stubbornly refused to move, and then he looked at Minato and then away at the ground. Kakashi finally grew annoyed enough and stood up. He smacked Obito on the head, and then he smacked Rin on the head. Both of them cried out with indignation at the attacks. Rin rubbed her head and glowered.

"Kakashi! What was that for?" She asked.

Kakashi looked down at the two of them.

"You better fix this, because we're a team, and you two know what happens when teams aren't honest with each other and don't work together."

Rin's face clouded over with an expression of guilt and sorrow, and Obito swallowed and looked down. Kakashi nodded, satisfied, and turned to his dumbstruck sensei.

"Minato-sensei, can you tell me about fuinjutsu now?" Kakashi asked.

Minato looked at him, at the two sitting on the ground, and then back at Kakashi with a tight smile.

"Sure," he said. "Let's, uh - go to the other end of the training field."

Kakashi followed Minato, looking back over his shoulder to see that neither of them had moved. He shook his head. It had been three days, and they hadn't spoken a word to one another and their first mission was supposed to be tomorrow. It was only catching a cat, but still, Obito knew better than to make Rin upset with him.

"That was skilfully done," Minato observed. "You almost sounded like the sensei."

Kakashi shrugged.

"They're being stupid and it was annoying."

"Well, hopefully, they'll be all right from now," Minato said, looking back over his shoulder. "Do they often fight?"

Kakashi shook his head.

"Not like that."

Minato pursed his lips thoughtfully, then glanced at Kakashi, his eyes shining.

"So. Are you ready to learn about fuinjutsu?"

Kakashi recognised the look in Minato's eyes and nodded, holding back a grimace. He was about to be subjected to Minato's enthusiasm, and Kakashi hadn't been able to fortify himself for it. It was going to be a long day.

* * *

When Kakashi and Minato were a far enough distance away that they wouldn't be able to hear, Obito finally turned to face Rin directly. Rin kept her face turned away, and Obito let out a small sigh.

"Rin, I'm sorry," he said quietly.

Rin stayed quiet.

"I didn't mean to treat you like a kid," he went on. "And I'll try…but I don't…there's things I don't want to remember."

She kept quiet for a moment longer. Obito watched her expression shift from annoyance to something sorrowful.

"The things you can't say to me, you say to Kakashi," Rin said in a low voice. "And the things you can't say to Kakashi, you say to me. Promise me that."

Obito looked at her and caught her fierce gaze. He gave a nod.

"I promise," he said.

Rin took a deep breath and let go, relaxing her body and stood. She brushed the grass off her pink skirt.

"Good," she said.

She held down her hand to him, and Obito saw her expression soften and she smiled, finally. He felt a warmth spread through his body and reached up to take her hand. She lifted him up, and they held their hands together tightly for a moment before dropping them. They both looked over at Kakashi and Minato-sensei, who seemed deep in conversation.

"I feel bad interrupting them," Rin murmured.

"Me too," Obito agreed.

"Then can you help me with my taijutsu?" Rin asked, a little nervously.

Obito looked at her in surprise.

"Really?"

"You're both really far ahead of me in everything. I don't want to get left behind, so can you help me?"

Obito grinned.

"Sure," he said. "But it's not like our bodies can keep up with our heads all the time either. We're still growing. Kakashi is struggling with that too, and we get tired more easily. You're not as far behind as you think."

Rin shrugged.

"You don't have to be nice about it. I am behind. But, thanks for saying that," she smiled. "Let's meet every morning to train alone, okay?"

"I won't be late," Obito said.

Rin looked at him dubiously.

"Probably," he amended.

* * *

Obito, Rin, and Kakashi stood out the front of the hospital, looking up at it with wonder.

"This is not what it was like before," Kakashi breathed.

"It's bigger," Obito said.

Rin looked at them both with a giddy smile.

"I told you," she said. "Sakura and Tsunade changed a lot with the medic-nin this time around. Tobirama did lots too."

The longer they were in the village, the more that they understood the minor and major differences Sakura's presence in the past had made. The medic-nin was a good example of that. Konoha was undoubtedly the center of medicine in all the Five Nations, far more advanced and secretive of their practices than the other nations.

But there were other changes to Konoha. Like Kakashi's 'special chunin' rank, a type of probationary rank until the age of ten. It was a resolute law that genin were never sent to the frontlines, and even chunin under fourteen were unlikely to be put into battle. Compared to before, the deaths of child shinobi were lower, thanks to the passionate laws put forth by Tobirama and Madara during Tobirama's reign as Hokage.

Together the three walked into the Konohagakure General Hospital, which was not the wooden structure they had grown up with. It was a large building, made of wood and concrete, that looked for more structurally sound than it had in their pasts. Inside, Kakashi saw touches of things in the architecture, the equipment, the movement of the staff that reminded him of Lady Tsunade and Sakura. It made sense, he realised, when he saw the photograph on the wall of the past and present directors of the hospital. There was Sakura, a familiarly happy smile, and crinkles at the corner of her bright green eyes. The plaque beneath had her name:  _Lady Sakura Uchiha._  The picture beside Sakura's was that of Tsunade.  _Lady Tsunade Senju._

Kakashi's eyes widened as a faint memory hit him, that Tsunade hadn't left the village this time. He didn't know why or what had or hadn't happened, but the fact that she remained in the village was a big change that he knew Sakura had something to do with. Obito stared at her picture a moment as well, but Kakashi didn't know what he was thinking.

"Some things are the same, some are different," Rin said softly.

Kakashi and Obito both glanced at each her, and Rin gave them a smile.

"Sakura did what she did, and now we'll do what we can." She nodded at the small bouquet of flowers they each held. "This is one of them."

"Yeah," Obito sighed. "This is."

Kakashi glanced at him, and then away, knowing that this was one of the more important things Obito had decided to do, on his own path of redemption. The trio made their way through the hospital and up to the second floor in the maternity wing. They were stopped by a harried-looking nurse, who smiled when they told her why they were there. She told them to wait and she'd ask permission. Down the hall, Kakashi saw an old man with grey and black hair, dressed in a medics coat, walking with a cane, and carrying a potted plant.

"Oh, that's old man Shouta," Obito said, seeing where Kakashi was looking.

"Who's that?" Rin asked.

"He's like, a really, really old Uchiha. Kind of weird, though. People say he used to be…" Obito trailed off and gasped. "They say he was a student of Madara and Sakura," he whispered frantically.

Kakashi stared at him.

"And you're only just remembering this now?" He deadpanned.

"Obito…" Rin shook her head.

"It's not my fault! There's so many Uchiha, you know! And he's so old!" Obito defended himself.

The nurse returned.

"They said it was all right," she smiled at them. "Don't be loud, and don't stay too long, okay?"

"Thank you," Rin said to her.

Kakashi looked back in the direction of the supposed ex-student of his ex-student and was slightly startled to see that he had stopped and was staring at them. Neither Obito or Rin noticed. Kakashi stared back for a moment, and then followed the nurse down the hall in the opposite direction. When he looked back, Shouta Uchiha was gone, and Kakashi felt like that wasn't going to be the last they saw him. Obito poked his head in the door first when the nurse opened it.

"Excuse me," he said, stepping in.

"Ah, Obito, you've come with your team."

Fugaku Uchiha gave the three of them something that was almost like a smile.

"Sorry to intrude," Rin bowed.

She elbowed Kakashi, and he gave a little bow of his head as well.

"Oh, Fugaku, look," Mikoto said softly, looking at them from the bed. "They've brought flowers. How kind."

In her arms was the baby they'd come to see. Obito held out the flowers to Fugaku, who took them awkwardly.

"Congratulations on becoming a father!" Obito said cheerily.

"Yes, congratulations, Lord Uchiha, Lady Uchiha," Rin bowed again and handed him the flowers.

Kakashi smiled under his mask at seeing Fugaku stand with a bunch of flowers in his arms. Seeing the softer version of Fugaku was always a rare sight, but Kakashi had always held a lot of respect for him.

"Is it a boy or girl?" Kakashi asked, handing off the flowers to him.

"A boy," Fugaku answered proudly.

"Would you like to see him?" Mikoto asked them.

"If that's okay," Rin replied shyly. "We just came with Obito to say congratulations."

"Thank you all very much," Mikoto replied. "Minato and Kushina came by earlier as well, you could've all come together, but that's no matter. Why don't you put the flowers on the table behind you, and the nurses will bring in the water later," she said to her husband, who followed her directions and then took his place by her side.

Obito, Rin, and Kakashi gathered on the other side of the bed, all peering anxiously at the baby.

"He's cute!" Rin cooed.

"Do you have a name for him?" Obito asked, clear interest in his voice.

Mikoto and Fugaku looked at one another and smiled.

"Itachi," Mikoto answered. "Itachi Uchiha."

Kakashi and his team all glanced at one another and grinned, each of them feeling slightly relieved at hearing the name.

"A good name," Kakashi said with a nod.

"Yep," Obito agreed happily.

Rin beamed. Mikoto and Fugaku looked at them with confusion, but then shrugged it off with little laughs, too wrapped up in the happiness of their sleeping newborn.

"That's it, I decided I'm going to be his mentor," Obito puffed out his chest proudly. "Itachi's going to be the best Uchiha ever, so he's got to learn from the best."

"That's clearly not you," Kakashi said.

"I'm going to be the Hokage, so it is too," Obito retorted.

They stopped talking when Itachi gurgled in his sleep. Rin smacked them both on the arm.

"Shhh. Don't wake him."

Mikoto laughed softly.

"I'm glad he'll have someone looking out for him," she said, looking down at Itachi with enough love that Kakashi had to look away.

He looked up at Fugaku, who was looking at Obito with some interest.

"Isn't it, dearest?"

Fugaku nodded.

"It is," he murmured a reply.

"We'll go now," Rin said. "Thank you for letting us come in and meet him."

Mikoto nodded and smiled. Obito waved cheerily at them.

"See you," he said.

Fugaku nodded at them, and Kakashi gave the baby Itachi one last look before he left the room, smiling under his mask.

* * *

Minato had to concede to Kakashi's judgment that he had underestimated his team, severely. With the way they completed every D-rank mission with ease, their boredom was evident, as was their potential. Minato wasn't the only one who noticed. Lord Hokage had called him into his office to discuss it.

"It appears your team has exceeded expectations," Hiruzen Sarutobi said.

Minato nodded.

"Yes, Lord Hokage. They've worked hard."

Lord Third nodded his head thoughtfully.

"Too advanced for simple missions, too young for the battlefield." Minato tensed. "This is a difficult situation, given the state of the shinobi world."

Minato remained quiet.

"These are exceptional circumstances. It is crucial to free up missions to train our new genin, which means you'll need to give your team more difficult missions."

"Lord Hokage - they're only nine, and have only been a team for a month," Minato said, reluctant to push them into missions that are likely to jump to B or A rank missions.

"I am aware," he replied. "But holding them back from their true potential as shinobi is only going to be detrimental to both the village and their development. Having them take missions that are too easy for them is taking away the opportunity for the other teams to develop."

Minato reluctantly agreed.

"When you return, we'll discuss this again."

"Return, Lord Hokage? Do I have a mission?"

Hiruzen nodded and handed Minato a scroll. He took it and read it through quickly.

"Understood, sir."

Lord Third nodded, and Minato was dismissed. Distracted by thoughts of his team as he walked back towards his home, Minato was intercepted by the infamous Ino-Shika-Cho trio. They greeted him with smiles.

"Minato! I hear your team is shaping up to be the biggest surprise of the generation," Inoichi clapped him on the back.

"You did?" Minato asked, eyes wide.

"You've run out of missions for them to take, apparently," Inoichi continued with a grin.

Minato sighed but smiled.

"That's true. It's only been a month since we became a team and it's like they've been working together for years."

Choza, Inoichi, and Shikaku exchanged glances with one another.

"Your team has Kakashi Hatake, doesn't it?" Shikaku Nara asked.

Minato nodded.

"I heard he's a handful," Inoichi commented.

Minato frowned.

"So did I. I heard the same about Obito as well. The reports were incorrect."

Shikaku raised an eyebrow.

"Is that so?"

Minato gave a wry smile.

"Well. They are handfuls, but in a different manner than expected. Rin is a good balance for them."

Choza laughed.

"Well. I think we ought to see just how good your team is, Minato," he said. "How about a match? Team Minato against Team Choza."

Minato thought about it.

"You've been a team for a year now, haven't you?"

Choza nodded, still smiling broadly.

"What's the matter, Minato?" Inoichi mocked. "Scared of a little competition?"

Minato grinned at him.

"Of course not. How about you and I have a little spar, Inoichi? It's been a while since I beat you."

Inoichi laughed heartily.

"I learned my lesson. No challenges from me, Minato," he winked.

"Have the bout," Shikaku said. "We'll observe. I'm interested to see what you mean about Kakashi and Obito."

"Thanks," Minato nodded. "Sorry, I need to get going. I have a mission."

"We won't hold you up," Choza said. "We'll talk again when you return. Good luck."

Minato walked off towards his home, only to change course when he felt a familiar chakra close by. Sitting on a stool at Ichiraku Ramen was Kushina. She turned and grinned, her cheeks full of ramen when he entered the shop.

"Hey Kushina," Minato greeted her with a happy smile, taking a seat beside her.

She swallowed her ramen with a loud gulp and smiled before she caught sight of the scroll in his hand.

"You're going on a mission," she said, sounding disappointed.

He nodded.

"A week at most," he replied.

"Where?" She asked quietly.

"You know I can't answer that," he said apologetically.

Kushina sighed.

"Fine." She dug into her ramen.

"Can you do me a favour?" He asked.

"Sure, anything."

"Will you come to meet my team today? And make sure they're all right while I'm away?"

Kushina smiled.

"Oh, Minato, I've been waiting for you to ask!" She said excitedly. "I've been dying to meet them!"

"I know," he smiled back.

"But first, ramen!" Kushina declared.

"I've got to get my stuff ready," Minato said, edging out of his seat.

Kushina gave him a glare.

"You're the fastest shinobi in the world. You can spend five more minutes eating ramen!"

Minato sat, unable to argue with her. He watched her passionately eat her ramen with fondness and pinched her nose when she asked why he was looking at her.

"Hey!" She blushed.

"Meet me at training ground 7 in thirty minutes," he said to her. "I'll go round them up."

"Wait!" Teuchi stopped Minato from leaving. "Minato, wait a moment, please."

Minato looked at him, realised he wasn't about to force some ramen onto him and returned to the counter. Kushina watched them carefully.

"What is it?" Minato inquired.

"I had a message, from that person I told you about," Teuchi said.

Minato's eyes widened.

"Oh. What did it say?"

"Only that she's coming back soon," Teuchi said.

"She?" Minato asked. "She who?"

"That's all it said," Teuchi said. "Sorry."

Minato nodded slowly.

"Thank you for your help."

Kushina was frowning, and he gave her an encouraging smile.

"I'll see you soon," he said as he left, wondering who 'she' was and theorising as he used his sensory abilities to search out for his team.

Minato couldn't help but enjoy the look of shock on the faces of his team when he showed up to get them all. Rin was studying a book of medical ninjustu in the park when he appeared in front of her, causing her to let out a squeal of shock and then placed a hand over her heart and gently admonished him. It was too cute and high-pitched for him to take seriously. He apologised to her with a gentle smile.

He found Obito in the Uchiha District, walking down the street with his hands in his pockets and popped up beside him, startling him enough for Obito to jump and squeal. Kakashi was the funniest, however. Minato didn't know why, but Kakashi had taken refuge hidden in the branches of a tree and was reading. Minato flickered to the same branch, and Kakashi was so surprised he fell out of the tree. It was hard for Minato to hold back his laughter, especially at the adorable little glare Kakashi shot him.

* * *

Minato disappeared and in a pop and puff of smoke, and Obito let out a sigh and looked up at the clouds. He hadn't wanted to do anything for the rest of the day, and Minato-sensei made it sound like they were going to have a surprise training session.

"That's an unusually sour face on you."

Obito blinked and tilted his head down, surprised to see Fugaku Uchiha standing in the road in front of him.

"Oh. Hello," he said.

Fugaku raised an eyebrow.

"Lord Fugaku," Obito added respectfully.

"Good afternoon, Obito. I wondered if I might have a word with you," Fugaku said. "About what you said in the hospital."

Obito gaped.

"Uh, yeah. Okay, sorry if that was impertinent?" He scratched the back of his head nervously. "Um. Sensei just called us in for a meeting."

"Then I expect to see you tomorrow for dinner," Fugaku said firmly. "Don't be late."

Obito chuckled nervously.

"Me? Late? Never…"

Fugaku walked away and Obito watched him go with confusion and shock. Itachi's birth had seriously softened the man up, he'd never spoken so informally to Obito in the street before. Obito walked out of the Uchiha District and towards the training grounds, taking his time to arrive. He was only ten minutes late, which apparently worked out well.

"We're still waiting for our special guest," Minato told him with a smile. "But now that everyone is here, I'll tell you why I called you." He paused. "I'll be away on a mission for a few days."

Obito couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed by the news, and by the droop in Rin and Kakashi's shoulders, they felt it too.

"Ahh, freedom," Kakashi said unenthusiastically.

Rin and Obito rolled their eyes. Minato chuckled.

"Not quite." They looked at him expectantly. "While I'm away, you'll need to keep up with your training because when I return, you'll be having a match against another genin squad."

"Whose squad?" Obito asked eagerly.

"Choza Akimichi."

Kakashi's eyes widened.

"Guy," he breathed so quietly Obito almost missed it.

Minato did miss it and continued talking.

"His team consists of Might Guy, Genma Shirunai and Ebisu. They've been together for a year now, so they'll be a good challenge for you."

"All right. That's so awesome. It'll be good to let loose a bit," he grinned enthusiastically, cracking his knuckles.

"Okay, okay, settle down," Minato smiled. "Before that, I wanted to introduce you to the shinobi who'll be taking care of you guys while I'm gone."

"Who is it?" Rin asked eagerly.

Minato looked behind them.

"Here she is now," he said. "Kushina Uzumaki."

Kushina. Obito felt his body turn cold as all the blood drained from his face. He was frozen to the spot, unable to move.

"Hey! I'm super happy to meet you guys finally!"

He heard her happy, cheerful voice call out and slowly turned to see her bright smile. His heart began to race, his palms sweat, and his breathing came quick and harsh. He was assaulted with memories dominated by her.

_Red hair, her caring, and scolding, smiles, laughter, homemade lunches, and warmth._

_Red blood, her panting with effort and pain and a baby crying, her strength, her rage, her despair, all the blood, all the pain, death, and Naruto's cries._

He didn't realise they were talking to him until he saw a hand reach toward him and he stumbled back, landing on his backside.

"Obito?" Minato looked incredibly worried. "Are you all right?"

He glanced up and saw him, and then saw her. Yellow hair. Red hair. And he couldn't take it, he couldn't be here. He couldn't see them together, not when the last time -

 _"No,"_  he breathed, scrambling away. "No, no, no…"

"Obito!" Rin cried.

Kakashi said nothing, just watching him as he backed away, and held Rin back from going after him. Obito turned and ran. He ran until his lungs hurt and his legs ached until he heaved up everything in his stomach, hand, and knees on the forest floor. Spewing bile and crying, his body trembling with the force of feelings he'd been able to keep at bay until he saw her. He rolled over on his back, and put his hands over his face, sobbing and straining, alone in the forest as his guilt and remorse and shamed pressed in on him.

* * *

Kakashi held back Rin and she struggled against his grasp.

"Kakashi! Let me go - OBITO!" She cried out.

"Rin, let him be alone. We'll see him later," Kakashi tried to reason with her. "He needs to be alone."

"No! He needs me!"

Rin elbowed Kakashi in the ribs and he winced, but he didn't let go.

"What… happened?"

Kakashi heard Kushina's airy and confused voice behind them. She sounded shocked and hurt. Kakashi cast a regretful look to her.

"Sorry, Kushina. He's not…feeling well," Kakashi said lamely.

"Kakashi, let me go to him," Rin said again, trying to pry his arms off her.

"Kakashi, Rin."

Minato said their names firmly and Rin finally stopped struggling. Kakashi let her go, and saw that she had tears in her eyes, he clenched his jaw. He felt as conflicted about going after Obito as he did about giving him space.

"What happened?" Minato reiterated Kushina's question. "What happened to Obito?"

Kakashi swallowed. He couldn't give them a good answer. There was no doubt that seeing Kushina had set Obito off somehow, but exactly why, Kakashi couldn't say.

"He's just… not feeling well," Kakashi said again.

Rin sniffed and looked away.

"Please forgive me, Minato-sensei, Kushina, it was nice to meet you."

She quickly sprinted off in the direction that Obito had run. Kakashi, left with Minato and Kushina, watched her leave.

"Sorry, sensei," he murmured quietly.

He glanced at Kushina, who was frowning with concern.

"Obito's just - " he paused and scratched his head. "He'll be okay. He's just dealing with a few things. Don't worry about him. You should just focus on your mission. Rin and I will take care of him. He's our teammate."

Minato studied Kakashi for a moment before he slowly nodded.

"I leave him to you then." He looked at Kushina. "I'm sorry, I don't know what happened. I'm sure he'll be all right soon."

"It's okay," Kushina said slowly. "I just hope he's okay. Kakashi is right, you should focus on your mission now."

Minato nodded.

"Yes, and I should be going." He looked at Kakashi. "Kakashi, the team's in your hands until I return. Make sure you all keep up with your training and listen to Kushina. She's a very talented shinobi."

Kushina smacked Minato on the arm and blushed. Kakashi nodded.

"Yes, sensei."

He looked away to give them a moment of privacy, and then Minato was gone, leaving Kakashi and Kushina alone in the practice field. Kakashi looked at her properly for the first time. He saw the same happy energy in her that he remembered from Naruto. Her smile was wide and bright, her eyes shining, though there was still a shadow of concern for Obito in her expression.

"Well, Kakashi. Minato has told me so much about you!" She said.

"All lies, I am sure," Kakashi said with false cheer, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

Kushina laughed.

"Oh, Minato never lies. It's all good things. He tells me you're very talented, and that have you an interest in fuinjutsu, that's my clan's specialty, you know!"

Kakashi smiled under his mask.

"Oh, really?" He questioned.

"Yep. I'm an Uzumaki, you know! We're sealing masters."

"So are you the one that taught sensei about fuinjutsu?" Kakashi asked.

Kushina tapped her chin.

"Well, I definitely helped. Minato's pretty good at everything he puts his mind too, and you know, his old sensei was really good at sealing too."

"Minato-sensei said Master Jiraiya was coming back to the village soon," Kakashi said casually.

"Yep. I heard that too!" Kushina said excitedly.

Kakashi and Kushina spoke for the next half hour until Kakashi couldn't stand to not go looking for Obito. Kushina promised to meet them at their regular training ground tomorrow, and Kakashi waited until she was out of sight until he ran off after Rin and Obito. It took a while, but he found them in a dense part of the woodland surrounding the village. They were deep in the forest, almost at the borders. Obito was laying on the ground, curled into a ball on his side. His face was smeared with dirt and tears. Rin sat beside him. Only touching him with a single hand on his arm. She looked up as Kakashi entered, her eyes red-rimmed and watery. Kakashi sat on the other side of Obito and put his hand over Rin's, remaining silent. After a while, Kakashi glanced down when he felt Obito shift. He removed his hand, and Obito sat up, shaking the dirt from his hair.

"Obito?" Rin asked quietly.

Obito swallowed and clenched his jaw.

"Sorry," he mumbled.

"Don't apologise," Rin said. "Just - please, Obito. Talk to us."

Kakashi nodded. This time around, they were going to stick together. Kakashi didn't want any of them to keep everything locked away like he had. He knew how hard it was to live with the memories that haunted you, day and night. The three of them were bonded now with experiences that no one else would ever understand or know; they needed each other. Obito sniffed and cleared his throat, but he didn't speak. Kakashi looked at him, and Rin, and then he looked away and up at the trees around them.

"I think I wanted to die for a long time."

He spoke like he was talking about the weather. He didn't look at them. Someone needed to talk and start it. Inwardly, he wondered why he was the one bothering to do it, but in the end, as much as Kakashi acted like he didn't care, he cared a lot and he wanted the ones that mattered to know it this time around. He had grown up since the last time he was a kid, in that respect at least.

"I just didn't care," he went on. "Both of you were gone, and then so was sensei. It all happened so..so fast." Kakashi closed his eyes. "It took a long time and intervention from some others and the Hokage before I started to care. Then came along Naruto, and Sakura, and even Sasuke when he was a cute little angry genin, and they were just like us. Sensei's kid, a ball of crazy energy just like Kushina, with the will of his father."

Kakashi gave Obito a sidelong glance, seeing that he was clenching his fists tightly shut.

"We're all here. We all made mistakes and now we're all alive."

The rustle of the leaves and branches in the forest around them sounded as the wind blew through. Kakashi took a deep breath and kept quiet, waiting for Obito to speak. Rin gave Kakashi a tight smile, and dropped it, looking at Obito with concern.

"The last time I saw her, I … " Obito trailed off and cleared his throat. "Do you remember when she sent us off on our last mission together? Before Kannabi Bridge, at the village gates, she told me to make sure I protected you both."

"You did," Rin said, sniffling. "We both survived that mission because of you."

"And then I killed her," Obito said harshly.

He stared hard ahead and then his face contorted with pain.

"All I can see is her face, and sensei's, that night…protecting Naruto, when I…" He shook his head. "I can't face her after what I've done."

Rin and Kakashi stared at each other over his lowered head, their expressions mirroring each other in uncertainty and sorrow. Rin slowly placed her hand on Obito's back, and then lowered her head to rest on his shoulder.

"Obito, I'm really…proud of you," she said quietly.

Obito flinched in surprise, and Kakashi looked at her curiously.

"Because you said it, what you were really feeling. You admitted it, and now you can move forwards," Rin continued.

"When we leave here, we're going to have to go back to the village, and you can't avoid her," Kakashi said quietly. "You're going to have to deal with it."

Obito glowered at him a little.

"But we'll be here," Rin said softly. "And you can leave when you're ready, Obito."

Obito looked down at the ground and sniffed, wiping his nose with the back of his jacket, and Kakashi saw tears fall to the ground. In the forest, the three of them stayed together until the sun set. Rin resting her head on Obito's shoulder, and him taking comfort in her warmth, and Kakashi sitting on his other side, being there quietly. When the sun went down, and the woods turned dark around them, Obito finally was ready to leave.

"Thanks," he mumbled to them.

Kakashi simply nodded and Rin walked between them, holding both of their hands, acting as the anchor between them all she had always been.

* * *

There were few things Jiraiya enjoyed more than sake and women, but despite all his best efforts to have both at the same time, he found it impossible under the scrutinising glare of his companion, who consistently reminded him why they were stuck in the tavern in the first place. The Land of Fire was under threat on all sides, but it was Iwakagure who posed the greatest threat to Konoha. The Tschuikage was a stubborn man, filled with resentment toward the past leaders of the village. Jiraiya was gathering intel in Kusagakure about the movements of the Iwa forces. The people of Kusagakure and the surrounding country were packing and readying to flee. Kusa would become the battlefield, it was just a matter of when. Across the tavern, a group of Iwa shinobi was drinking and speaking about the war. Mostly it was bluster and nonsense, but there was one thing that piqued Jiraiya's interest, and that was that Iwa was having difficulties with Suna. Until those dissipated in some way, Konoha had time.

"We need to report," Jiraiya muttered.

His companion nodded.

"When they leave."

Twenty minutes passed before the shinobi left, and it was another ten minutes after that before Jiraiya departed alone. As suspected, he was confronted in the darkened street, a kunai at his feet halting his progress forward. He looked down at it, before pulling out his own just in time to fend of the dozen kunai that came for him.

"You know," he said in the empty street. "I generally like to know who I'm fighting. Since you obviously know me, it's rude not to introduce yourselves."

A moment later, and he was surrounded on all sides. There were 6 shinobi, the same ones from the bar, all with Iwa headbands. He glanced at them.

"You're a long way from home," he commented.

"So are you, Jiraiya of the Leaf."

Jiraiya smirked.

"So you do know me," he said. "Then you know that the one who leaves here alive is going to be me."

The Iwa shinobi bristled and glared at him.

"Don't underestimate us!"

Jiraiya chuckled.

"Oh, I'm not. You're just forgetting one thing." He looked around sharply. "I'm not alone."

Three of the six suddenly fell, though Jiraiya hadn't moved a muscle. The other three looked in horror at their fallen comrades, one had a broken neck, the other a senbon in his throat, the third without a visible wound at all, yet he was clearly dead. Beside Jiraiya appeared his companion. Black hair to her waist. Sharp, dark eyes. Strikingly beautiful, she looked no older than twenty-five, but she was over fifty.

"What took you so long, Ayame?" Jiraiya asked her.

Ayame grinned at the Iwa shinobi.

"Ayame…It - it's Ayame Uchiha."

The other two looked at their companion, who was backing away. They didn't look like they knew who she was. They looked between Jiraiya and Ayame and then comrades, fallen and fleeing. They stood their ground, and Jiraiya shook his head.

"So," Ayame said, cracking her knuckles, "you haven't heard of me then?"

"D-don't fight her!"

The one who recognised her was tugging at the sleeves of his comrades.

"You can't beat her."

"She's a dog of Konoha," one of them hissed. "Get off me, coward."

"No! She's the daughter of Madara Uchiha and the Iron Fist!"

"What?"

"She's so young," one of them said, more warily now.

"Appearances can be deceiving," Ayame smiled.

She moved so fast it wasn't perceptible to the eye and appeared behind the Iwa shinobi who was trying to flee.

"You really should've listened to him."

She spoke to the Iwa shinobi who were spinning around to see her before she stabbed him in the neck with her kunai, and then, when he crumbled to the ground, she lunged forward and killed them with quick slices to their necks. It was all over in less than ten seconds. Jiraiya sighed.

"You could've kept at least one alive for interrogation," he said.

"Who do you think I am?" She pointed at the one with the senbon in his neck. "He's not dead. It's a sedative and precisely placed senbon."

"Of course," Jiraiya replied. "How could I not have known."

"You should hurry up and grab him, we need to move," Ayame said.

"Why don't you take him?" Jiraiya grumbled. "People are heavy."

Ayame slapped Jiraiya on the back of the head.

"Because I'm a lady."

Jiraiya scoffed quietly.

"Could've fooled me."

Jiraiya went flying from a kick to his back and looked back to see Ayame walking away, swinging her hips like nothing had happened.

"Why are all the women in my life so aggressive?" He muttered.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 4**

Obito straightened out his clothes and cleared his throat before he knocked on the door to his clan leaders house. Fugaku answered the door, sliding it open and revealing a softer than usual expression most likely brought on by fatherhood, and Obito grinned at him. He walking in without an invitation from his clan leader, sniffing the air and claiming he was starving and that it smelled good. Obito knew that his behaviour was slightly annoying to Fugaku, who was used to a certain amount of deference from the clan, particularly the youth. As much as Obito was continuing to act like the nine-year-old body he was in, he was also enjoying seeing Fugaku try not to get too worked up about it. Despite everything, Obito had always felt that Fugaku was a man to be respected. He rounded the corner to see Mikoto preparing the dinner table.

"Good evening, Obito," she smiled. She looked a little tired.

"Let me help you!" Obito immediately offered. "You just had a baby a week ago! You should be resting still."

Mikoto laughed lightly.

"Oh, thank you very much, Obito. But it's quite all right, I'm stronger than I look."

Obito grinned.

"I know. Grandma told me you were a super cool shinobi."

"Indeed she was," Fugaku said, appearing behind Obito.

Mikoto smiled and placed the last of the bowls of food at the table, and they all sat. Mikoto made small talk, asking after Obito's grandmother, inquiring how he felt now that he was graduated from the academy, how he liked his team. Obito replied cheerily and happily, finding Mikoto easy and pleasant to talk too. Fugaku listened without interrupting, responding only with small nods when Mikoto asked his opinion. When the dinner was finished, Obito helped to clear the dishes, and Mikoto left them alone to tend to Itachi. Fugaku prepared tea for them, and Obito thanked him for it, wondering what exactly Fugaku wanted to talk about. He'd been avoiding it so far.

"So, Obito," Fugaku said, the tone of his voice indicating a more serious turn of conversation. "I've spoken with Minato and he told me that he's been quite impressed with you."

"Yeah, I'm working hard," Obito replied.

"It would appear your academy instructors underestimated you," Fugaku said. "The reports I received, and Minato received, were quite different to what Minato described to me."

"Well," Obito chuckled, acting nervous. "A good shinobi doesn't reveal all his skills too soon."

Fugaku raised an eyebrow, looking almost amused.

"And a nine-year-old shinobi has that many skills to conceal?"

Obito grinned proudly.

"Yep!"

Fugaku scoffed a chuckle.

"Indeed."

Mikoto came back into the room, Itachi bundled up in her arms, softly sobbing. She gave Obito an apologetic look.

"He wants his father," she said, smiling softly.

Fugaku took Itachi in his arms, and gently rocked him.

"So, Obito, how do you like having Minato as a sensei?" Mikoto asked Obito, eager to hear his thoughts.

"Minato-sensei is the best!" Obito responded enthusiastically. "Maybe even stronger than you, Fugaku," Obito joked.

Mikoto laughed, hiding it behind her hand. Obito thought for a moment that he'd said something really wrong. Until he saw a smirk form on Fugaku's face.

"Perhaps he is," Fugaku chuckled. "We shall see."

Obito gaped, surprised.

"Oh, I think Kushina could give you both a run for your money if she were serious," Mikoto added.

"No way!" Obito cried out at the same time Fugaku said, "Not a chance."

They glanced at each other in surprise.

"Though she can be terrifying," Fugaku admitted, somewhat reluctantly.

Obito struggled to keep his discomfort off his face, talking about her.

"Um. You said you wanted to talk about what I said at the hospital." 

Mikoto glanced at Fugaku, who passed her the now sleeping Itachi. He opened his mouth to speak, but Itachi, sensing the change, woke and became unsettled again. Mikoto gave her son a regretful look and passed him back to Fugaku with a little sigh. Fugaku seemed quite pleased with the whole situation.

"Yes, I did," Fugaku said, settling Itachi in his arms again. "I have spoken with Minato about your progress, and I have to admit there seems to be a change in you. Gone is the foolish boy I saw in the academy."

Obito frowned and set his mouth in a firm line.

"Lord Fugaku."

At the change of tone in his voice, both Mikoto and Fugaku seemed to listen more closely.

"Lots of people have underestimated me because I might not seem so serious, but I am an Uchiha, and I have a dream I'm working towards."

Fugaku looked at him thoughtfully.

"And you believe you can become Hokage?" He questioned, not snidely, not with any attitude, simply with curiosity.

"I  _will_  become Hokage," Obito said firmly.

Mikoto and Fugaku glanced at one another.

"Then I shall grant your request," Fugaku said after a slight nod from Mikoto.

Obito blinked.

"What?"

Mikoto laughed lightly.

"Itachi's going to need someone to look up to," she smiled.

Obito looked between her and Fugaku.

"But you will need to prove yourself," Fugaku said sternly. "I will not allow this if you do not continue to grow in strength and wisdom."

Obito felt a rush of exhilaration and relief.

"I won't let you down," he vowed.

"I expect not, you are an Uchiha."

Obito clenched his jaw, hesitating.

"Then… there's something…" he trailed off.

"What is it, Obito?" Mikoto asked, frowning with concern.

Obito took a deep breath, wondering if Kakashi was going to kill him and if he was making the right choice.

"Here goes nothing," he muttered under his breath. He closed his eyes and then opened them again.

Mikoto gasped, and Fugaku's eyes widened in surprise.

"You - you have the Sharingan," Mikoto breathed.

Fugaku frowned.

"Three tomoes," he said, his voice ringing with shock and concern. "Obito, when did this happen, and why didn't you say anything?" He demanded.

Obito chuckled nervously.

"Well, um, I guess, about six months ago," he said, thinking of a story frantically in his head. "I just… well, you know, Kakashi is just so - I made a resolution? I want to be the Hokage, I'm going to become strong. I just… felt a change in me."

Fugaku narrowed his eyes, unsure whether to believe Obito's bad explanation. Mikoto also looked doubtful, but she spoke, looking at Fugaku.

"Strong emotions can come from many different places," she murmured. "The strength of one's convictions…" she trailed off.

Fugaku's frown didn't falter, but he gave a slow nod.

"Perhaps, but for a matured Sharingan immediately, and so young." He shook his head. "Obito, you should not have kept this hidden."

Obito nodded and released his Sharingan, eyes spinning back to black.

"Minato-sensei doesn't know," he said quietly. "Kakashi and Rin do."

"Just because you have awakened out bloodline limit, it does not grant you immediate control," Fugaku said, his voice tight and reproachful. "It's dangerous; the Sharingan requires training to master. You will train with me, whenever I am in the village, every morning."

Obito swallowed, Fugaku's tone was harsh.

"But… we have training with Minato-sensei in the morning," he said weakly.

"I will speak with him," Fugaku said. "I will be at your training tomorrow, Obito Uchiha."

"But Minato-sensei is out of the village on a mission," Obito said, slightly panicked.

Fugaku narrowed his eyes.

"Then I will oversee your training tomorrow."

Obito nodded in defeat, regretting revealing anything to Fugaku now. Kakashi was actually going to kill him.

* * *

Kakashi strolled the village as usual: nose in his book, appearing unobservant to the world around, yet aware of every detail. In his left hand, he carried a bag filled with the necessary equipment he needed to create the chakra seals. If Team Minato was to battle Team Choza, there was no way they'd be able to keep a lid on the extent of their powers without being forced too. Genma was likely to provoke Obito and Obito would go off and forget himself, and Guy always brought out the competitive spirit in everyone. Ebisu was just… well, Kakashi had a plan for defeating him with ease.

So, whilst he had his head in his book, Kakashi was not oblivious to the commotion being caused down the street in front of him. Might Guy was an incredible force of nature, sometimes exasperating and embarrassing, but always loyal and true and one of the greatest friends Kakashi had ever known. Guy was the one shinobi, one man, that Kakashi had absolute faith and trust in. His youthful spirit was something Kakashi had been anxiously anticipating, it had just been bad luck they hadn't run into each other yet.

That luck was about to change. Kakashi peeked over the top of his book and saw Guy lunging towards him with more enthusiasm than lunges should ever require or be performed with. Kakashi halted, and waited, lowering his book only when he heard:

"Kakashi Hatake, we meet again at last, my rival!"

He closed his book and put it in his pocket.

"Hello, Guy," he replied, happily.

Guy leaning forwards, looming close into Kakashi's personal space.

"You are looking particularly youthful today!" Guy declared.

"Well," Kakashi replied. "We are nine, youth is generally guaranteed at this age."

"Very true! So - "

"Should we have a challenge, and lay our youth on the line?" Kakashi interrupted him, voice tinged with amusement.

Guy's eyes widened. Kakashi, skimming his memories, knew that their friendship wasn't fully formed as yet, nor was their rivalry.

"Ah, but, it would have to be later this afternoon, after training," Kakashi went on, ignoring Guy's stunned expression.

"You are  _offering_  to challenge me?" Guy asked, bewildered for a moment.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow over his mask.

"We are rivals, aren't we? I'm a born elite, right? And you're an elite through hard work," Kakashi repeated the words Guy had thrown at him years before.

"Yea-yeah!" Guy said, coming back to his senses. "That's right!"

Kakashi nodded.

"Exactly. So we're a good match for each other. I'll meet you at the village gates at four."

Guy nodded enthusiastically, thrusting his thumb up and into Kakashi's face so aggressively Kakashi leaned away slightly.

"I look forward to this challenge from you, my rival!"

"We're not just 'rivals' Guy, we're  _eternal_  rivals," Kakashi sighed. "You're my eternal rival," he said, walking off and smiling under his mask that he'd been able to render Guy a little speechless.

He turned back to see Guy looking after him, tears pouring down his face.

"My eternal rival is so cool!" He sobbed loudly, drawing the attention of the villagers.

Kakashi kept walking, pulled out his book, and smiled. For the next hour, until he needed to leave for practice, Kakashi hummed while he worked on the chakra-restraining seals for him and Obito. But after he arrived, saw the guilty look on Obito's face, the exasperated one on Rin's, and heard what Obito had to say, Kakashi's mood dropped significantly into something more bloodthirsty.

"I was in a very good mood today," Kakashi said, his voice calmer than it should be.

He withdrew two kunai from his weapons pack and was glad when he saw Obito stiffen and begin to back away.

"But you just ruined that, Obito, and now I'm going to kill you for being so stupid."

Obito withdrew his own kunai to block Kakashi's just in time. Kakashi attacked again and again.

"Kakashi," Obito spoke between blows.  _"Kakashi!_  I told you, I'm sorry, but it was the only way I could prove I was worthy of being around him and Itachi."

"That doesn't mean you're not an idiot!" Kakashi retorted as he attempted to kick Obito in the head.

Obito blocked the kick with his forearms and glared at Kakashi.

"What do you expect me to do?" He asked, pushing back and standing tall.

Kakashi pulled his leg back and stood, keeping quiet.

"I can't hide it for much longer," Obito muttered. "You know that, Kakashi."

"At least this way Obito has a connection to Fugaku," Rin said, quietly defending him.

Kakashi gave her a tired look and rubbed his face.

"He's going to be watching you. You've suddenly become very powerful, you realise that, right?"

Obito nodded.

"I know. I'll handle it."

Kakashi sighed.

"And he's coming here today?"

Obito nodded.

"I told him that it awakened because of my resolve to be strong and become the Hokage."

"And he bought it?" Kakashi deadpanned.

"Uh. Not entirely. But he'll let it drop for now since Mikoto kind of convinced it him it could be possible. He knows that you two know, but I said I didn't tell Minato-sensei yet."

Kakashi let out a long sigh and put his kunai away.

"You should've spoken to us first, so we could work out a better plan," he said, annoyed. "This doesn't just affect you."

Obito glowered.

"You're not the only one who can make decisions for us," he snapped.

"No, of course not," Kakashi snapped back. "You've got a great track record of making good choices, don't you?"

Obito flinched, and Kakashi immediately regretted saying that. A sharp slap to his face from Rin stung his cheek. He hadn't bothered to try and stop it.

"Apologise," she said, her voice shaking.

Kakashi swallowed and took a deep breath.

"Sorry, Obito," he said thickly.

Obito clenched his jaw and said nothing in response. There was a tense silence before Kakashi cleared his throat.

"I'm working on the chakra seals," he said quietly. "They'll be ready tomorrow for training."

Rin sniffed.

"Good."

Kakashi looked at Obito, who was staring hard at the ground, his fists clenched. He was about to apologise again when he felt two people approaching. He turned at the same time Obito to see Kushina and Fugaku approaching. Rin immediately stepped forward and Kakashi saw her take Obito's hand and squeeze it. He gave her a quick smile, pulled his hand away and mutter that he was fine, but Kakashi saw that he was a little pale and his hands trembled, but he didn't leave or run. Kushina was smiling brightly at the three of them, though her eyes clouded over in concern when she saw Obito. Fugaku looked stern. They were about to be lectured.

"Good morning, Rin, Kakashi…Obito," Kushina greeted them.

"Good morning, Kushina," Rin said with a broad smile.

"Morning," Kakashi mumbled.

"…Good morning, Kushina," Obito said, looking at her feet.

Kushina's eyes widened slightly, but she didn't say anything else about it, instead, she told them that Fugaku had come to talk to them today, and since she'd been called unexpectedly to the Hokage's office, he would be overseeing their training. She left, but not before telling them she was taking all three of them out for ramen tonight. They all couldn't help but grin a little, lifting the tension that had been simmering between them all. Kushina had a way of doing that. A different kind of tension arose, one that made both Kakashi and Rin step unconsciously closer to Obito, as Fugaku looked down on them with a look of intense disapproval.

"I would assume Obito has informed you two why I am here today," he said in a low voice.

"Yes, Lord Fugaku," Rin answered.

Fugaku looked hard at Kakashi, waiting for a verbal response.

"Yes," he murmured.

He folded his arms over his chest, his disapproval radiating off him in heavy waves.

"I don't expect the two of you to fully understand the seriousness of Obito's Sharingan being awakened, however, Kakashi, you especially should understand that keeping this a secret from your sensei, not to mention his clan and the Hokage, is a serious matter."

Kakashi nodded, fighting the urge to scowl.

"Lord Fugaku, you can't tell the Hokage," Obito said, suddenly panicked. "Please. I don't… I don't want anyone to know."

Kakashi felt the same panic. If Obito's Sharingan became known, he'd be closely monitored by the Hokage, Fugaku, Minato-sensei and those interested in the Sharingan: Orochimaru and Danzo. Rin must have thought the same thing since they both caught each other's eyes and looked at Obito with panic. Fugaku's frown deepened.

"Why?"

Kakashi saw Obito swallow.

"I think we should wait for Minato-sensei to come back first," Kakashi said quietly.

"Y-yeah," Obito said, quickly catching on to what Kakashi was saying. "Please, please, Lord Fugaku. Can we just wait to talk to Minato-sensei first?"

Fugaku took a deep breath in and then out, considering the plea.

"Until he returns then," he reluctantly conceded.

Kakashi didn't know why the clan leader had agreed to it, but he was relieved that he had. The Sharingan, Kakashi knew, was something incredibly precious to the Uchiha. It could be that Fugaku had considered the various pros and cons to exposing Obito's development, and was uncertain how to proceed. Perhaps he knew the dangers that would come to Obito if it were known. Even Itachi hadn't awakened a fully formed Sharingan. Not that Obito technically had since it was something that came through time with him, but as far as Fugaku knew, this was an anomaly. Hopefully, he would try to protect Obito.

"Thank you, Lord Fugaku," Obito said, sounding as relieved as Kakashi felt.

Fugaku cleared his throat.

"Until then, you must not use your Sharingan." He gave Kakashi and Rin piercing looks. "You two are responsible for making certain that he does not."

"Yes, Lord Fugaku," Rin replied immediately.

Kakashi nodded, and Fugaku seemed satisfied. He then began their training session. The each faced each other in taijutsu matches: Rin vs. Kakashi, Obito vs. Rin, Kakashi vs. Obito, and then a match between the three of them, and Kakashi was pleasantly surprised that Fugaku was a fair and open instructor. He was a little harder on Obito, but gave advice to Kakashi about different ways to approach his opponent, and even demonstrated some forms and styles for Rin to consider. If Fugaku wasn't the clan leader and didn't hold responsibilities as the Chief of Konoha Police, Kakashi thought that he'd be a good jonin leader.

* * *

The days without Minato passed slowly for Kushina Uzumaki. Worry gnawed at her, as it always did, the longer he was away. She had total faith in his abilities, but she couldn't help but have a lingering sense of anxiety when he was gone. But her anxiety was two-fold because of the incident with his student, Obito Uchiha. Kushina had absolutely no idea what had happened to cause the boy to react in the way he had; she didn't know if it was her or something else, or what it was. She was confused and concerned. He'd looked like he was in a waking nightmare, trapped by something he was seeing, pale and shaking and horrified.

Minato had been just as confused and concerned as she was. From everything he'd told her, Obito was a cheerful boy, who smiled and laughed, but was serious when he needed to be, with intelligence he often kept hidden. He said they'd get along well. She confirmed her thoughts that it had something to do with her when Obito had refused to look at her, still seemed shaking and pale. She was surprised when he'd mumbled out a greeting to her. She wouldn't press him, as much as she wanted to since she knew that it would likely blow up in her face. Instead, she would wait (as long as she could since she knew she was impatient) for him to open up to her a little more.

Kushina was mostly worried that maybe it had something to do with Kurama. She wasn't sure how he'd even know about that, but maybe he had heard it. It seemed unlikely though. But there was something nagging at her, and it had to do with the Nine-Tails. He'd seemed…restless when she'd been introduced to Minato's students. Not that Kurama would answer her when she questioned him about it. Despite everything that Lady Mito had told Kushina about the Nine-Tails, Kurama was very much resistant to anything Kushina had to say to him, and she could feel how much anger was twisting around within him. She often questioned why Mito believed that he could be befriended.

Obito, although he didn't look at her face, and mostly kept his gaze on the ground, or her legs, or anywhere else, was very slowly beginning to speak to her more than just with one-word answers and gestures. Kakashi and Rin seemed less concerned about him now, which eased Kushina's fears. It was clear that neither of them had expected his outburst either, with Rin being the most openly affected by it to the point of tears. Kakashi had seemed less sure about how to respond, but it was obvious he was concerned. She didn't like the looks of apology those two kept shooting her though, that was going to have to stop. It wasn't their fault, whatever had happened to Obito.

She loved Minato's team, despite everything. It was clear that they all shared a deep connection, and she was beginning to understand what Minato had told her about it seeming like they had some kind of invisible wall around them. There was something…more, about them, some indefinable quality to their interactions. Kakashi seemed incredibly laid-back: he walked slightly slouched, hands in pockets, a bored look on his face. But his eyes were sharp, and it was clear that he didn't miss a thing. He was, Kushina observed, one of the most skilled and intelligent shinobi she'd ever seen. Cool, calm, collected. She was envious of that. His bickering with Obito was amusing. Obito seemed to be the only one that could get a rise out of Kakashi. Their rivalry was clear, and Obito wasn't lacking in skill or intelligence either, despite what he lead those around him to believe. He was much like Kakashi, portraying the character of a loud fool, and hiding his true ability. Kushina found it a little strange that the two boys were so good at hiding their natures at such a young age. Without knowing everything she did about them from Minato already, she likely wouldn't have picked up on a lot of the subtitles in their characters.

Rin was sweet and kind, but she wasn't a push-over. Both of the boys showed her a lot of respect, and she returned it, even though she wasn't quite at the same level skill-wise as them. She wasn't afraid to tell them off, but she also encouraged them both as well. Kushina noticed slight favouritism to Obito from her, a different kind of concern then what she showed Kakashi, and Kushina wondered why that was with a little smile. Kushina, lost in her wonderings, jumped in surprise as a little pop and puff of smoke appeared in front of her. It was a little messenger toad. She smiled.

"He's on his way home?" She asked.

The toad nodded.

"Thank you," Kushina said relieved.

The toad disappeared and Kushina jumped up off her couch and headed over to Minato's house. She was going to cook him a big welcome home dinner for his return.

* * *

Minato's favourite thing in the whole world was Kushina's cooking, and coming home from a short but tiring mission to her food was his second favourite thing. After reporting the success of the mission to the Hokage, Minato hurried back to his house, anxious for a bath and to relax a little. Seeing that his lights were on made him smile brightly. Kushina attacked him with a hug the second he closed the front door. He stumbled back slightly and laughing, catching her in his arms for a hug. He'd missed her. He briefly closed his eyes and inhaled her scent.

"Minato, welcome home," she said softly, squeezing him tightly.

She pulled back with a tender smile, and he felt his heart skip at the sight of her beautiful expression. Without thought, he reached for her, and splayed his hand over her jaw and neck, pulled her into a kiss. She was surprised, but he felt her smile against his lips.

"I missed you," he murmured, pulling back and leaning his forehead on hers.

"Me too," she whispered.

He gave her a second, gentle kiss before he let her go.

"I warmed up the bath for you," she told him.

His body sagged in gratitude. His bath was bliss, and he came out of it feeling refreshed and happy. He leaned on the wall, watching Kushina potter around his little apartment, humming to herself as she washed and dried the pots and pans, putting them away. The food was ready and waiting on the table for them both to eat. He remembered the first time he'd seen her at the Academy, and the stirring in his chest was the same now as it was then. Kushina was fire and warmth, her temper matched by her compassion and love. She had faced many hardships in her life, but she still smiled brightly and lived fearlessly. Minato was constantly amazed by her.

"Marry me, Kushina," he said.

Kushina turned and looked at him with an amused smile. It wasn't a surprising reaction, it wasn't the first time they'd talked about it.

"Right now?" She questioned.

He reached her in three quick strides.

"Right now. This minute. This second. Marry me."

She put the hand towel she'd been holding on the bench beside them, and her amusement heightened.

"And people think I'm the impatient one," she grinned.

Minato felt his cheeks heat, but he smiled at her all the same.

"We could do it," he insisted. "We could do it now since we're both in the village for a while."

Kushina tilted her head thoughtfully.

"Well…I did see a nice little house…" she trailed off.

"So." Minato couldn't help the little nerves in his chest. "Is that a yes? Will you marry me?"

Kushina looked up at him and beamed.

"Yes I'll marry you, I love you, you know!" She cried out.

They embraced in a big hug, Minato spun her around a little and they laughed and smiled and enjoyed their dinner together, making plans and dreaming about the future. When dinner was finished and Minato and Kushina sat together on the couch, he asked about his team, growing concerned when Kushina looked troubled.

"What is it? Is it Obito?" Minato questioned her. "Is he okay?"

Kushina bit her lip.

"Well, yes, I suppose," she replied, causing Minato even more anxiety. "I mean, he's not looking at me at all, but he's talking a little bit."

She looked upset.

"I don't know what I did, but he doesn't seem to like me much."

Minato didn't know what to say.

"I'm sorry," he apologised. "I don't know what happened either. I'll have to talk to him."

"Yes, but, that's not all."

"What else happened?" Minato asked. "Is it Kakashi? Or Rin? Are they all right?"

With the amount of tension Minato felt at the thought of something happening to them, he'd never be able to leave for a week again due to worry. Kushina shook her head.

"They're fine. You were right, there is an atmosphere around the three of them, like an invisible wall."

"But…?"

"I think... I think Obito awakened his Sharingan," Kushina said.

Minato's eyes widened in surprise.

"Fugaku came to talk to them, and Obito's been doing extra training with him," Kushina told him.

"With Fugaku himself?"

Kushina nodded.

"Yes. So… I think something else is happening. You know Fugaku is so busy he'd only train someone himself if there was something extra special about them."

Minato nodded, absorbing the information with a frown. If Obito had awakened his Sharingan, it might explain why Kakashi claimed he was 'dealing with some things' when he'd run off. It could also explain a few things about Obito's apparently dramatic improvement of his skills. But…Minato's frown deepened. Why did he feel the need to hide it? Was Minato not trustworthy? It didn't sit comfortably with him that his students felt the need to hide things from him, and he knew they'd been doing that since they met.

* * *

Obito sat nervous and impatient in the home of Fugaku, Mikoto and Itachi Uchiha. They were all waiting for the arrival of Minato-sensei, and Obito could only wish that Kakashi and Rin were with him. Fugaku had forbidden it, telling them they could wait until Minato spoke to them. Fugaku sat with his legs crossed, arms folded over his chest, and eyes closed. Mikoto was poking Itachi's cheeks, and he was gurgling at her. Obito watched their interaction with some fascination; he was reminded that even people who grew up to be like Itachi were just innocent little babies once. Minato arrived, and Mikoto rose to greet him. Obito started to sweat. When Mikoto lead Minato into the room, he saw the tight worry on Minato's face and felt guilty. He looked down at the table. Mikoto excused herself and Itachi, telling them she was off for a walk. The room was tense and silent when Mikoto left.

"Please take a seat Minato." Fugaku gestured to the seat adjacent to him.

Minato sat, and glanced at Obito, who was still staring at the table.

"Good morning, Fugaku," Minato said. "Good morning, Obito."

Obito glanced up and mumbled a good morning to him.

"Sorry to call you here and have such a serious atmosphere," Fugaku started. "But there is a serious matter to discuss. Obito - " Obito looked up to see Fugaku staring at him. "You asked that I refrain from revealing this until your sensei returned."

Obito swallowed and nodded. He glanced at Minato, who was waiting patiently, but his brows were drawn together slightly.

"I - I awakened my Sharingan," he said.

Minato didn't look surprised, he simply asked when it happened.

"Six months ago," Obito said.

At that, Minato's eyes narrowed and Obito thought he detected a flash of hurt in them, but it was quickly gone.

"I see," Minato said.

He looked to Fugaku for further clarification.

"Obito's awakening was not typical," Fugaku explained. "The Sharingan takes time to fully mature, usually awakening only with one tomoe."

Minato nodded.

"Obito awakened a fully matured Sharingan."

At that, Minato looked surprised, eyes wide and turned back to Obito.

"Obito, that's - you shouldn't have hidden this from me."

"From anyone," Fugaku said with heavy disapproval. "The Sharingan is not a dojutsu to be taken lightly, especially not from those who wield it."

"I'm sorry," Obito apologised to them both. "But - " he took a deep breath.

At this point, he decided, honesty was the best thing. The more truth he told, the easier it would be in the long run.

"I knew it wasn't normal," he swallowed. "That I awakened it fully so early. I'm not..I'm not like the other Uchiha's." He glanced nervously at Fugaku. "I'm different. I didn't want anyone to know, but Kakashi was there when it happened and Rin… we don't have secrets. I don't want the extra attention, I just - " he shook his head and then bowed. "Please, Lord Fugaku, Minato-sensei, please don't tell anyone - not even Lord Hokage - until after I become a chunin."

There was silence and Obito kept his head bowed, praying that his plea was being heard.

"Raise your head," Fugaku ordered quietly.

"I can't speak for your clan," Minato said. "But this is something that as your sensei I need to know, and so does the Hokage."

Obito paled. If the Hokage found out, so would the council, which meant that Danzo would too. He rose his head and locked eyes with Fugaku, willing him to understand. Fugaku gave an almost imperceptible nod and Obito's eyes widened slightly.

"I would ask that you do not inform anyone of this," Fugaku said, looking at Minato. "Until Obito reaches chunin, I don't believe this information will benefit anyone."

Minato frowned, and Obito felt relieved.

"His Sharingan may be mature, but training is required to master it, and given the history of Uchiha who matured early, it's not unreasonable for Obito to wish to keep his development from the village," he said meaningfully to Minato.

Minato took a moment before he seemed to recognise what Fugaku was saying, and Obito looked at them both in confusion.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

Fugaku looked at Minato, who was failing to keep the interest from his eyes, and Obito realised that Minato didn't know any specifics either. Fugaku seemed to wrestle with whether or not to say anything.

"Fugaku, if this is something that affects my students future, please share as much as you are able," Minato said.

Fugaku inclined his head.

"As you are aware, Minato and Obito, the Uchiha have always been a very powerful, respected and feared clan. This has never gone away, even within the village, there are those who would prefer we were gone, or who covet our power."

Both Minato and Obito leaned forward slightly, listening closely.

"There were those who believed Madara Uchiha was not to be trusted, but he proved them wrong in their fears." Fugaku paused. "In the time of the second Hokage, a threat within the Uchiha rose. A threat to the village and the world."

"And this threat was like Obito?" Minato asked. "Someone who matured early?"

Fugaku nodded slightly and Obito frowned, wondering why as an Uchiha he'd never heard of this from his grandmother or anyone else in the clan. Surely his grandmother knew since she was likely alive then.

"By all accounts, this individual was a different character to Obito," Fugaku said, glancing at Obito like he was trying to assuage his concerns. "A born prodigy, with power equal to Madara Uchiha at thirteen, who wreaked destruction within and without the village until they died at the hands of their own surviving family."

There was a thoughtful silence from Minato and an intense one from Obito. He felt like Fugaku could have been talking about him, and in a sense he was. The life of a villain, a terror to the world; Obito had embodied it. He'd almost succeeded in his demented plans. If it wasn't for Naruto, Kakashi, and Minato…

"I am not a threat," Obito said in a low voice, his hands shaking. "I swear it. I won't ever be that, so please,  _please_  trust me."

He looked at them both pleadingly, his last plea. If Minato wanted to go to the Hokage after that, Obito and Kakashi were going to have to find a way to deal with it, but he really hoped that wouldn't happen. Minato had been conscientious to the village in the previous timeline, yes, but he'd listened to his students, Obito hoped that would be the same now, even though they hadn't been a team that long. Minato let out a little sigh.

"Obito, if you feel that strongly about it…"

He trailed off and glanced at Fugaku a moment before looking at Obito again, who had a flickering of hope in his chest.

"Until Fugaku tells you otherwise, you are not to activate your Sharingan," he said sternly, and Fugaku nodded. "I will speak with Fugaku about recommendations for your training for now, but we'll continue on as we always have."

Obito felt a wash of relief flow over him.

"We will train every day together," Fugaku added. To Minato, he said, "I will keep you informed."

"Thank you," Obito breathed in relief.

Minato escorted him to the training grounds after that. A frown of disapproval was etched on his face, and Obito felt guilty seeing it there, and for the distance, he'd put between them with how he acted toward Kushina and that he couldn't quite act as he normally would. Walls felt like they'd been crumbled, and now Obito wasn't sure they'd go back up.

"Obito."

Minato sounded hesitant, almost wary and Obito felt a crashing in his ears. Obito thought he was a good actor. Good at pushing things away. He'd had a whole lifetime of doing it. But that was a different time. Obito wasn't an adult, he was a child again, and his body and mind were in conflict. He, like Kakashi, was struggling to control his impulses.

"Obito, I think you know I'm shocked, and I have a lot of questions."

Obito looked at where they were - close to the training ground. A road vacant of everyone except the two of them. He felt the turmoil within him rise like it had that day with Kushina. He couldn't bear it, and Minato's soft concern only brought back memories of a time before that made it hard to breathe. He stopped and saw that Minato was looking back at him, first with confusion then wide-eyed concern.

"Obito? What is it? What's wrong?"

His vision blurred with tears and Obito couldn't contain himself any longer.

"I'm so sorry," he cried out, collapsing and crouching down, hugging his knees. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" he repeated it over and over, barely hearing Minato's panic.

He only stopped his mumbling out of shock when he felt Minato embrace him tightly. He froze in his sensei's arms and focused on his voice.

"Obito, it's all right," Minato soothed. "You're all right. I'm here for you."

Obito's trembling continued but the hysterics began to fade, and tears spilled over. Slowly, he unwrapped his arms from his legs and tentatively wrapped them around Minato, who jolted slightly in surprise, but remained where he was. Obito sniffed and gave into the comfort of a child he was receiving. He buried his head in Minato's neck and whispered that he was sorry, clutching Minato's jacket tightly, and hoped that this Minato would never know exactly what he was sorry for.

* * *

Over the next month, Minato observed his team closely. The spar with Team Choza was delayed because of his concern for Obito's mental state. No matter how hard he pushed Obito to speak to someone, Obito refused adamantly, stating that he was fine. But it was clear that he wasn't. The boy who'd declared his intent to be Hokage had been a bright, cheerful kid. Two months later, everything about him was muted and oftentimes faked. Though, Minato noticed, with a mixture of delight and concern, that Obito didn't hide his true feelings from his teammates, or himself. The fact that Obito was allowing Minato to see behind the facade he put on for everyone else meant a lot to Minato. Obito trusted him.

Whatever had happened to Obito had begun the day he met Kushina, and neither Kushina or Minato knew why. He looked…tortured. His eyes had glazed over and he'd paled, and the way that Rin and Kakashi had responded betrayed their obvious concern. But, upon further thought, neither seemed surprised and that was odd enough. There was far more to his team than Minato was aware of, that much he was absolutely certain of. But apparently, no one else knew that, not even the Hokage. Minato questioned why they all had a look of clear relief on their faces, and shared secretive glances with each other when he said Obito's Sharingan would be kept quiet from everyone except them and Fugaku. As much as he couldn't deny that he did like the amount of trust they appeared to have in him, Minato was growing frustrated at not knowing what they were keeping from him.

Rin had briefly asked about finding a medic-nin instructor, and he'd told her that she needed to focus first on their team formations, and the basic genin skills. She'd been visibly disappointed, and begged him, in a manner not unlike what Obito had begged him and Fugaku, to please find someone just once a week. She had to be a medic, she told him because she didn't want to lose anyone. To Minato's knowledge, Rin hadn't lost anyone except her father when she was a baby, so he couldn't figure out why she looked so terrified at the prospect.

Kakashi often watched Obito and Rin with a look of pain on his face when he thought he wasn't being watched. His gaze held far too much emotion than it should for a kid his age. So did Obito's. Rin was the exception, but at times she seemed to have a very specific type of worry on her face that Minato couldn't place. Minato had a deepening sense of unease about the three of them, and as the days passed by, even Kushina's attempts to soothe him were no longer working. In any case, he knew she was worried too, mostly about Obito.

It only got stronger when he discovered the three of them met regularly in Kakashi's apartment, having what looked like serious discussions. He'd learned early on that Obito and Kakashi had very good instincts as shinobi, and sneaking up on them was close to impossible. But Minato was no slouch. He remained hidden as he stalked his students, and when he couldn't hold back any longer and given in to the urge to search Kakashi's apartment for those scrolls they seemed to be writing in, Minato was shocked to the core. There was no way on earth that Kakashi would let just anyone into his apartment, and he knew there was no one else that could do what had been done in there except for him, Kushina, Jiraiya and perhaps the Hokage. His apartment had been sealed with such intricacy that it would take a solid five minutes for Minato to figure out how to get in without setting off any traps. Kakashi wasn't lying when he said he was interested in fuinjutsu, but this was levels far advanced than Minato had taught him.

Knowing that Kakashi was out for the next few hours at least, Minato entered his apartment after disabling the seals within and shook his head with amazement. He only found one thing of interest in the ten minutes he spent inside the little place. A scrap of paper, written in Kakashi's scrawl, fallen forgotten under his bed.

_Save Obito. Save Rin. Save Minato. Save Kushina. Protect Itachi. Stop Danzo. Stop Orochimaru._

_Akutsuki ? - Ame._

_Shisui? Sakura._

Minato stared at the paper, noting all the names, the words before them, the hasty strokes of the pen. Save… He swallowed reading his own name, and Kushina's. What did this mean? Why was Kakashi writing that? The rest of it was equally confusing. What had Danzo and Orochimaru done in Kakashi's mind to warrant being stopped? He quickly placed the paper back in the place it had been before, and reactivated the seals as he left, feeling disturbed with the words on the paper burned into his mind.

_Jiraiya - if I'm wrong, then just ignore this, but I need to express this. Something is … off. I feel as if I'm on the precipice of something, and Kakashi and Obito are in the center of it. You asked me to keep them safe, and I swear I will, but things don't add up. If you know something, just… come back sooner rather than later. - Minato_

* * *

Ayame Uchiha had always loved her father's hair. It was immaculately cared for, long, soft, thick and never got in the way of his battles. She had styled her own hair after his. Hers wasn't as thick as Madara's, it was like her mothers, but black not pink. It was side-swept, covering her right eye constantly, and down to her waist. She cared for it with her father's brush, that had been repaired several times since it was old and broken, but she refused to replace it.

Izara, she remembered, looked distinctly like a small, masculine version of Sakura. His eyes were large and wide and kind, although constantly bruised with tiredness because of his illness. But he was always being told he looked just like his mother, even with his dark eyes and black hair. Ayame was a little envious of that. She and Ryuu had looked more like their father - sharp eyes, angular features, milky skin, a little taller than Sakura, smiles that drew attention. No matter what people said about Madara Uchiha, there were very few who properly understood his character. Ayame had been privileged to see the side of him that no one else did: the doting father, the loving husband, who smiled more than he frowned.

Ayame sighed and lay back on the grass. Although she looked to be in her mid-twenties, she was actually twice that, at fifty-one. Her mothers jutsu had its benefits. The purple diamond seal that had graced Sakura's forehead was hidden on Ayame's. It was easier to hide her identity like that. Sakura had only taught Ayame and Tsunade that seal, and although Tsunade was a first-class medic, Ayame was not on her level, she didn't have the patience for it. Her use of the Creation Rebirth seal was in a different vein to her mother and Tsunade, adapted to her own skills with help from research left by her father.

There were times Ayame wished she could go back to those days, when the village was a little smaller, when Izara was still alive and when she could spy on the oh-so-handsome Tobirama and he'd pretend he didn't know she had a teenage crush on him and teach her some of his jutsu. She smirked a little, remembering her innocence back then.

"Ayame."

Jiraiya stood over her. His white hair and red facial marks sometimes reminded her of Tobirama, until he opened his mouth and ruined her imaginings. Tobirama was far superior to her traveling companion in all ways. Especially since Tobirama wasn't prone to perverted spying in hot springs.

"Are you ready to go?"

She closed her eyes.

"No," she replied. "But I guess we have too."

Jiraiya chuckled.

"Yes, we do."

She opened her eyes to see him holding down a hand to help her to her feet. She ignored it and stood up herself. Jiraiya rolled his eyes a little but wasn't offended. Ayame stretched her arms high to the sky, leaning left and right.

"You go report to the Hokage," she said. "I've got other things to do."

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow and sighed.

"Are you leaving me here then?"

She grinned.

"I wouldn't have to leave you behind if you could keep up, you're so slow."

There were very few people who could tease one of the Sannin about a lack of skill and yet be telling the truth. Jiraiya scoffed.

"Well forgive me for not being trained by the village founders."

"Not everyone can be special," Ayame laughed. "See you in Konoha."


	6. Chapter 6

 

**Chapter 5**

The fight of Team Minato versus Team Choza would be taijutsu only spar, it was decided. Choza wanted to make sure that Genma and Ebisu understood the importance of ensuring their taijutsu was up to par, even if they didn't possess the same enthusiasm for it as Might Guy did. Minato agreed to the condition, knowing his team excelled in taijutsu but he didn't expect their reactions. Obito groaned in open frustration, Rin looked forlorn and Kakashi looked disappointed and worried. Minato quickly discovered that the reason for that was Might Guy. Minato had heard that the young boy was a veritable genius at taijutsu, but according to Kakashi, he was the strongest taijutsu user of the generation and probably for all time. Coming from Kakashi, that was a strong compliment that made Minato wonder if he'd made the right choice.

He certainly didn't expect to see the dynamics between Might Guy and his team. Upon arriving at the training ground on his hands, Might Guy greeted Kakashi as his eternal rival with a lot of respect and enthusiasm in his voice. Kakashi, to Minato's surprise, had a softness and a hint of a happy smile in his eyes. Minato had expected Kakashi to be brusque to the overwhelming quality of the kid, but instead, he was eager and open.

Obito, however, seemed immediately put off and after a few words between the three of them were spoken, Minato realised it was likely due to jealousy. Guy and Kakashi were clearly close, and Obito seemed to be unconsciously threatened by it. It made Rin and Minato smile, and when Minato caught Rin's eye, she giggled in understanding, rolling her eyes at the antics of her team. The other two on Choza's team were interesting characters. Genma chewed a long grass, seemed laidback with his hands in his pockets and a lazy grin on his face. He greeted them all like old friends, and Minato recognised the little barbs he threw out to try and rile Obito up. Obito seemed to brush them off, and Minato was proud of that.

Ebisu was one of those kids that Minato remembered from the academy: nose in the air a little like he was better than everyone else. The way he looked at Kakashi and Obito, with eyes edged with disdain, made Minato's brows furrow protectively. His boys, however, ignored him and acted as if he didn't exist at all which only served to aggravate him. Just as the two teams were getting ready to begin, Shikaku and Inoichi arrived.

"What are they doing here?" Obito blurted out, glancing at Kakashi.

"Observing," Minato replied.

He imagined that if Kakashi wasn't wearing his mask, he'd see a mouth set firm in displeasure. Minato looked at Kakashi a moment longer before looking away. He couldn't help but want to pull him aside and ask what that paper was about. Obito let out an annoyed sigh, and his team gave each other looks that Minato couldn't decipher.

"That's annoying," Kakashi grumbled. "Ah well, let's just stick to the plan then."

"Do your best," Minato said encouragingly.

"Thanks, Sensei!"

Rin gave him a thumbs up and a wink, before turning back to her team who were having a little discussion without him. Minato couldn't help but feel a little left out, he wanted to give them advice, but it appeared like they didn't need or want it from him. He scratched the back of his head, and gave a nervous chuckle, before stepping back to greet Inoichi and Shikaku.

* * *

Kakashi's lips pursed in annoyance. It would be hard enough to take on Team Choza without revealing too much of their skills, but added that it was only a taijutsu spar made it worse in a lot of ways, and now that Shikaku and Inoichi were observing, it became even harder. The plan had been and would remain to be, that they would take out Ebisu first, and then Genma. Obito and Rin would take that job on since Kakashi would be occupying Guy and Guy wanted to defeat Kakashi more than anything. Genma was no slouch of an opponent. He'd been a jonin and part of Minato's Hokage platoon guard in the past, and even in their previous childhoods, he was smart and versatile. Obito couldn't afford to let down his guard, because that was a strength of Genma's: taking the advantage.

Kakashi glanced at Minato, who was speaking with Shikaku but kept looking back at Kakashi with a slightly troubled look. He'd been like that all morning and it was making Kakashi wonder what he'd done and what Minato was so concerned about.

"Kakashi, pay attention," Rin scolded him.

He shrugged in apology and she sighed. The three of them stood together and looked over the field at their opponents.

"Are you ready, Rin?" Obito asked her.

She nodded.

"Don't worry about me. I'm ready," she said determinedly.

"You have the worst job," Obito muttered, looking at her pityingly.

She glared.

"Then you better make sure it's not for nothing!"

Both teams stood before each other and made the Seal of Confrontation. A tense moment passed. Each of them looked their opponents up and down, sizing them up.

"Are you ready for a fierce fight that gets our blood flowing, eternal rival?!" Guy asked with enthusiasm.

"You know me," Kakashi drawled, looking like he'd rather be anywhere else. "I'm always excited."

Guy raised an eyebrow and then laughed.

"You are very youthful, Kakashi!"

Obito scoffed and muttered something unintelligible under his breath, and then Choza told them to begin.

* * *

"Begin!"

Might Guy pushed off with his back leg, one step toward his eternal rival, before a quick step to the Uchiha. Kakashi saw the change of direction and moved, intercepting the attack with his forearms and side. Guy grinned.

"As expected of my rival!" He declared.

Kakashi didn't respond. If Guy's move was supposed to be a distraction, it might have worked on the old Obito and Kakashi, but not now. They were not the volatile teammates of the past, now, Kakashi and Obito had complete trust in each other, and battle effortlessly side-by-side. Obito put his hand on Kakashi's shoulder and used it as a platform to jump and swing a kick over to Guy, who jumped away from the surprise attack.

With a quick glance at Rin, who Kakashi saw had engaged Ebisu, he and Obito matched up against Guy and Genma. Kakashi ran at Obito to get to Guy, who was trying to get in another kick against Obito. Obito ducked, and leaned back, planting his hands on the ground behind his head and using them as a springboard to come back up at Genma with his legs. He and Kakashi timed it perfectly, as Kakashi flew over Obito, just as his hands planted. Genma wasn't expecting Obito's move, and when Obito landed in a crouch less than a meter in front of him, he lashed out with a knee aimed at Obito's face. Obito blocked the knee with his arms crossed in an X, and Genma retreated half a step back. Obito used the space to step forward and rise up to standing, and launch a series of jabs and punches at Genma.

Rin turned Ebisu around so that she could see Kakashi and Obito fighting behind him. It was apparent that both teams had decided to put those pair Rin against Ebisu, and that was fine with her. She'd improved her taijutsu a lot in the last month since she'd been training with Obito, and knew that her ferocity was alarming to Ebisu, who wasn't expecting it from the 'sweet' Rin Nohara he remembered from the academy. Rin grimaced as one of his hits to her side landed, and she quickly spun with an elbow aimed to him faced. He dodged, leaning back and Rin grit her teeth as their spar continued.

Kakashi hoped that Rin would finish off Ebisu quickly. He couldn't look away from Guy for a moment since his eternal rival was fighting fiercely. With every blow, Kakashi stepped half a foot toward Guy, forcing the genin back just a little bit at a time, and away from the other two members in his team. Kakashi had to swallow the temptation to knock Guy's legs out from under him and end the fight immediately. Young Might Guy still had a lot to learn, but if Kakashi ended it too quickly, Minato would get even more suspicious. Added to that, the Ino-Shika-Cho trio was sharp and knew how talented Guy was.

After his initial attacks against Genma, Obito went on the defensive against, making his opponent more wary with each blocked blow without retaliation. Genma had known Obito to be an attack first ask questions later kind of guy, and so he kept an eye on Obito's footwork to see what the Uchiha was planning. Obito kept blocking and shoving away the attacks Genma threw at him, waiting to hear the magic words from Rin.

"I heard a secret about you," Rin grunted at Ebisu as she blocked a high kick from him.

She wanted to beat him without having to use dirty tactics, but despite her new training regime, Ebisu was better than her and she wasn't going to last much longer. He seemed disinterested in what she had to say, and she went into a spinning low kick that he easily evaded by jumping up and backward before coming at her again.

"I heard," Rin tried to speak between blocking blows from Ebisu.

"That you are - " she kicked out, only to have him grab her leg and throw her back. She scrambled to her feet and attacked again. " - you are a big pervert - " she dodged another punch, " - for big chested women in swimwear. I bet you have loads of books of naked ladies!"

Ebisu finally took notice of what she was saying and looked at her with disbelief and reddening cheeks.

"I do not!" Ebisu denied, swiftly attacking her with jabs and swings.

"You do so!" Rin said, aiming a punch at Ebisu's ribs. "You're…" She grunted as he retaliated to her attack with an elbow to her forearm. She retreated and took a breath, "- a…PERVERT!" Rin yelled out, causing Ebisu to momentarily freeze in shock and redden in embarrassment.

That split second that he hesitated, Rin jumped back further, and Obito, who had finally gone on the offensive against Genma when he heard Rin start to talk, quickly knocked Genma's feet from under him, and sprinted to the stunned Ebisu, landing a strong punch on his jaw and sent Ebisu sprawling back and knocked out.

"One down," he grinned at Rin.

"Look out!" Rin cried.

Obito ducked as the recovered Genma came flying over him. But Rin realised that Genma wasn't aiming for Obito, he was going for her. A smirk spread over his face as the realisation widened her eyes. She managed to turn just enough for his kick to hit her in the meaty part of her shoulder instead of her collarbone, and she cried out as she was spun to the ground. Obito's eyes narrowed at Genma. Rin grunted in pain on the ground, clutching her upper arm. Kakashi risked a glance and saw Rin on the ground with Genma standing over her and Obito tensed to strike.

Kakashi grit his teeth and caught Guy's leg in his hands, raise his own leg and kicked Guy in the chest without letting go of his other leg. The blow was hard and directly on the sternum, and all the air went out of Guy's lungs. Kakashi used the weight of the leg he held to push Guy away before he left Guy there, spluttering and clutching at his chest, and ran over to his teammates.

"Obito!" He shouted. "Get Guy!"

Obito froze hearing Kakashi's shout. He glared at Genma and cursed as white hair flashed past him. Obito turned and ran for Guy, who was still clutching at his chest painfully. He looked up at Obito, and the familiar fire of a warrior lit his eyes. Obito clenched his jaw and forced himself to hold back, wondering what the heck happened to Kakashi's warning of going easy.

Kakashi and Genma engaged in a taijutsu battle of much more finesse than he had against Guy. Genma dodged and ducked and weaved, and Kakashi did the same. Rin, who was clutching at her arm, refused to let her two teammates take all the credits for a victory. She saw that Ebisu was still knocked out, and positioned herself behind Genma and Kakashi. Kakashi caught sight of Rin, and when they locked eyes, she lowered herself to a crouch on the ground and he understood her intentions.

Kakashi forced Genma back, closer to where Rin was waiting. Genma didn't notice her, because Kakashi made certain he had to be focused him, and when he was close enough, Rin kicked in the back of his knees, and Genma yelped and collapsed. It was then that Choza Akimichi called the match for Team Minato.

* * *

Obito let out a whooping cheer, and Rin sighed in relief. Kakashi simply stuffed his hands back in his pockets.

"Yay," he mumbled. "We won."

"That was…" Guy coughed. "A youthful battle!"

Kakashi winced and walked over to Guy.

"Sorry," he murmured. "That kick was a bit hard."

Guy shook his head.

"Do not be sorry! This is something that I will grow stronger from! I must train harder to make my bones stronger!"

"I don't think that's how it works," Kakashi replied.

"All right, Guy," Choza said, approaching them both. "Don't get too worked up. You fought well, but now you and Ebisu need to go and see a medic."

"Yes, sensei is very wise, your care of your students is admirable!"

Choza smiled, and Kakashi was glad that the Akimichi let Guy be himself. He glanced over at Rin and Obito, who was looking at her shoulder. She winced as he prodded it.

"Well done, Kakashi," Choza said.

Kakashi ducked his head.

"Thanks."

He walked away and then turned back.

"Guy, make sure you get that checked out properly."

"My rivals concern shows how good a shinobi he is!"

Kakashi just shrugged and walked back over to his teammates. Minato had joined them and was looking at Rin's shoulder.

"It's fine," Rin said. "Just a bruise."

"Still, you should get it looked at," Minato said. When he saw Kakashi, he gave them all a smile. "You all fought well and showed good teamwork. I'm proud of you."

Obito grinned and Rin blushed happily. Team Minato and Team Choza made the Seal of Reconciliation before Team Choza departed to the hospital, with Choza carrying Ebisu. Rin and Obito followed along with them. Kakashi remained with his sensei and the other two jonin.

"Seems like the rumours about your team were true after all," Inoichi said to Minato.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow. Minato laughed.

"I told you," he replied, his voice warm. "It's like they've been a team for years."

Shikaku looked at Kakashi.

"Or like they'd already lived a lifetime," he murmured.

Kakashi flinched slightly at the words that hit too close to home. Shikaku looked back up at Minato.

"You've done well with them," he said. "I think Lord Hokage was right. They're…" he glanced at Kakashi again, "advanced for their age."

Kakashi swallowed. There was something in the way that Shikaku was looking at him that made him feel extremely uneasy. Minato noticed his discomfort and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"That's quite the compliment," Minato said. "Right, Kakashi?"

Kakashi shoved his hands further into his pockets and ducked his head.

"Yep. Thanks," he said.

"We've got work to do," Inoichi said after an awkward moment of silence. "Come for a drink one night, Minato."

"Thanks, Inoichi," Minato said. He didn't move his hand from Kakashi's shoulder.

Kakashi and Minato were quiet until they were alone on the field. Minato dropped his hand.

"Is something bothering you, Minato-sensei?" Kakashi asked him.

Minato looked at him with a searching gaze. He seemed like he was about to saying something, but instead closed his eyes a moment and shook his head.

"No," he said eventually. "Just know, if there's something you want to talk to me about, I'll listen."

Kakashi tilted his head, looking up at Minato thoughtfully.

"What if it was about something so unbelievable you'd think I was insane?" He asked after a moment.

Minato's brow furrowed and before he could say anything, Kakashi waved him off, as if he were joking.

"You should go home to Kushina, sensei. I'm sure she's cooking up something nice for you," Kakashi said to him.

Minato just gave him another searching look.

"If you say so, Kakashi. But I mean it, I'm here for you."

Kakashi tried not to let his feelings show, but he was sure some of his sorrow came through his eyes.

"I know, sensei."

He watched as Minato retreated, growing smaller in the distance and then he looked up to the sky and let out a breath. Obito was right; he couldn't have hidden his Sharingan much longer, and Kakashi knew that they wouldn't be able to hide everything else from Minato much longer either. They spent too much time together. Kakashi lashed out an arm and kunai at the unfamiliar presence that suddenly appeared beside him.

"Good reflexes, brat, but you should be a little nicer to your favourite student's daughter, don't you think?"

Kakashi froze. He turned his head slowly to see who it was that had hold of his arm. She released her grip and he let his arms fall as he took in her appearance. Dark hair that fell over one eye and down to her waist. Her visible eye was dark and filled with amusement. She had the same seal that Sakura and Tsunade wore on her forehead. She wore a dark purple, thigh length qiapo, like the red one Sakura used too, and Kakashi assumed there was an Uchiha fan on the back. Her legs were covered with black tights, her ankles wrapped to her mid-calf. There were sword swords strapped to her back, an obi around her waist, and her weapons back were strapped to her mid-thigh.

"You look like your father," he said after a moment.

Ayame smiled, and it softened her face.

"Yes, I know."

Kakashi couldn't stop staring at her. No matter how much like Madara she looked, there was an air of Sakura around her in the way she stood, her expression, her presence.

"What's your name?" He asked, clearing his throat.

"Ayame." She looked at him quizzically. "You don't need to make certain I am who I say I am?"

Kakashi looked at her and then gave her a crinkle-eyed smiled.

"You don't think I'd know the daughter of my favourite student when I saw her?"

There was a flicker of something behind Ayame's eyes.

"You're exactly as she described…just shorter."

Her voice was teasing. Kakashi chuckled.

"Then I suppose we're both deceptive with our appearance. How old are you exactly?"

"It's rude to ask a woman her age," Ayame responded.

Kakashi turned back to the way that Minato had left.

"So you know who I am…and where I'm from," he said quietly.

"I do," Ayame replied.

"Why are you here?" Kakashi questioned, turning back to her. "Is there something from Sakura for me?"

Ayame's smile faltered.

"And here I was hoping to get to know the famed Kakashi-sensei before we got to the serious stuff."

"You make it seem like there'll be no time for that to happen at all." Kakashi gave her a look, questioning if his statement was true or not.

"Well," she grinned. "I think someone of my position in the village can take an interest in a genin team without too much suspicion, especially with a fellow prodigy in the mix."

"So you're a prodigy too then?"

"Oh, Kakashi Hatake, you have no idea."

Kakashi shivered, uncertain if he was afraid or excited.

"Your position?"

"Council member. Uchiha Princess. An amazing shinobi. Take your pick," Ayame grinned. "Don't I look important?"

Kakashi didn't bother to respond. Ayame's smile dropped and she looked at him seriously.

"That's another discussion. We have work to do in the village and outside of it."

Kakashi felt his posture raise, his hands slipped out of his pockets, the way it did when he spoke to authority.

"To answer your question, I'm here because Minato has sent Jiraiya some messages about you and Obito," Ayame said. "He's concerned and suspicious about you too, and about my mother."

"I know," Kakashi replied, slouching back down, hands again in his pockets. "It's harder than we realised to keep things from him…we just don't want to, really."

Ayame nodded.

"I understand, and he'll be briefed."

"Briefed?" Kakashi asked, slightly startled. "What do you mean? Do we have a mission?"

Ayame clenched her jaw.

"There are few people I trust, and fewer still that I respect. You're just a child, no matter what age you might be in your head."

Kakashi's eyes narrowed.

"Team Minato will be informed of the mission details once certain things are taken care of. For now, keep doing what you've been doing."

She pulled a book out of her obi.

"Here," she said with a soft smile. "From Sakura."

Kakashi took the book tentatively.

"Her journals, written for you."

Kakashi all but ripped the book from her hands. He barely noticed that Ayame left, he sat, cross-legged in the middle of the training ground, eyes pouring over the words in that familiar neat handwriting.

_Dear Kakashi,_

_I hope this journal finds you well. If Ayame handed it to you, then you've met my daughter. She's a force of nature, so like her father in many ways, but Madara was never that open with people except me, Hashirama and Tobi._

_I guess you have a lot of questions, and I'm sorry I can't be there to answer them all for you. This isn't the first journal I wrote, where I chronicled my life, but this is the one that's most important for you right now._

_Itachi and I destroyed Zetsu, that's the first thing you should know. So you can tell Obito that if he doesn't survive that mission where Zetsu and the evil Madara kidnapped and twisted him, I'll rise up and strangle him._ _I thought that things would be fine after that, I thought that I could try and change things. It took me a long time to realise that just knowing the future doesn't mean you can change it. Uzushiogakure is proof of that. Things that I did have changed what we knew to be, things that once existed have not been invented._

_But our world is one of balance. The chakra we possess is balanced, yin and yang, body and spirit. The world runs on a careful balance of push and pull, rain and sun, wind and still, growth and death._ _Zetsu was part of that balance, and when he was taken out, something had to replace it. There is no end to fighting against the darkness. Knowing you, you've probably already figured all of this out and are wondering what's replaced Zetsu._

_Kakashi, this new Konoha is filled with secrets. Old enemies have risen again, and I know you know who I mean. I tried to stop it, but some people won't be persuaded and others are easily lead. There are snakes in Konoha, hidden in the foundations, lead around by the dark._ _I know you'll understand._

_I'm watching over your father. He's a cute kid. Not like you._ _Did you know I was adopted by the Nara? They're my family too._

_Protect your loved ones, Kakashi. Trust your instincts._

_Love,_

_Sakura_

* * *

Jiraiya stood before the Hokage and presented the most recent intelligence of the Iwa forces he and Ayame had gathered. The Hokage dismissed his ANBU from the office and lit his pipe.

"Where's your companion?" The Hokage asked when they were alone.

Jiraiya sighed.

"Off doing who knows what. You know she does what she wants."

Hiruzen chuckled.

"Yes, I do. I assume she'll be checking in at some point?"

Jiraiya shrugged.

"Your guess is as good as mine, old man."

Hiruzen Sarutobi stared at Jiraiya a moment, sucking on his pipe thoughtfully.

"There's something else you want to say."

Jiraiya gave him a wry smile.

"Can't get anything past you, can I?" He let out a sigh. "All I can say is that you should keep a  _distant_  watch over Minato's team."

"Distant, you say?" Hiruzen blew out his pipe.

Jiraiya nodded.

"Keeping prying eyes away would also be useful."

Hiruzen gave a slow nod.

"I expect Lady Sakura had her reasons for hiding things from me, but I can't say it's not frustrating that you know more than I do," he murmured.

"Sorry sensei, I'm just better than you I guess," Jiraiya grinned.

"That remains to be seen," Hiruzen laughed. "You should go and find Ayame before she makes too much trouble and bring her here."

"No promises," Jiraiya said, disappearing with a puff.

Hiruzen Sarutobi sat alone in his office, his brows drawn together in a frown and wondered how distant was distant enough.

* * *

Ayame Uchiha found it worryingly easy to sneak into the office of the Chief of the Konoha Police, and when Fugaku returned to his office, he thought the same thing. Hearing her clansmen cut the knees off the shinobi in his office was amusing, but not the reason why she'd come to see him. When Fugaku was finished, he closed his office door and Ayame made no move to give him back his seat. He stood before the desk, arms folded over his chest.

"It's been a long time, Ayame," he greeted her.

She nodded in reply.

"It has. I hear you're a father, congratulations."

His face softened.

"Thank you."

Ayame smiled.

"Itachi, was it?"

Fugaku nodded. Her smile tightened.

"Did you name him after anyone specific?"

"No. Mikoto liked the name."

Ayame sat back and looked away.

"My mother knew an Uchiha named Itachi," she said distantly before she looked back at the surprised Fugaku. "He was a hero, who saved her and the village, in the beginning. Maybe I'll tell you his story one day…" She trailed off, then shook her head. "In any case, your son bears a good name."

Fugaku nodded slowly, his confusion and concern over her appearance clear in his eyes.

"I've come with good and bad news," she said, standing. "I'll be in the village for a while, so I'll take back that seat on the council you've been watching over for me."

"Then we should discuss - "

Ayame held up a hand and Fugaku pursed his lips and stopped talking.

"The other news is that you should keep an eye on your son," she said seriously. Fugaku narrowed his eyes. "Anything suspicious, anything at all that you or Mikoto notice, you must report it to me."

"For what reason?" He questioned, his voice hardened.

Ayame took a breath, and laid a hand on his arm, regretting that she wasn't able to tell him more yet.

"When I've gathered what I need, you will be told. For now, just be aware of the happenings around Itachi."

* * *

After a quick visit to the hospital to check on Rin and Team Choza - who were all fine, except for bruised egos - Minato walked home, thinking about the odd interaction between Shikaku and Kakashi after the match.

"A whole lifetime," he mused with a frown.

An odd choice of words. He walked up the stairs and entered his house. To his pleasure and surprise, he found Jiraiya and Kushina having tea in his kitchen.

"Jiraiya-sensei!"

"Hey kid," Jiraiya grinned. "How's it going? I heard your team had a spar with Choza's team."

"They won," Minato replied.

His jovial feelings quickly diminished at being reminded of his team.

"Something wrong?" Kushina asked with concern.

Minato shook his head, trying and failing to convey that he was fine.

"Why don't we go for a walk?" Jiraiya announced. "As much as I hate to leave the lovely and radiant Kushina, I'd like to talk to my old student."

Kushina looked between them and nodded.

"Have a good time," she smiled.

Minato gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and promised to check in with her later. She merely nodded, knowing that he'd tell her what he could when he could and she was okay with that. He followed Jiraiya out the front door and into the village. They walked, chatting idly until they reached the outskirts of the village, and then they kept walking. Minato allowed Jiraiya to lead him to the edge of the cliff he learned how to summon the toads on. Jiraiya folded his arms over his chest and looked out over the expanse of land. Minato stood beside him.

"You received my letters?" He asked his old teacher.

"That's why I'm here," Jiraiya replied.

Minato felt a prickle of unease.

"Was I right to call on you?" He questioned. "Does all this…strangeness… have to do with Sakura Uchiha and the boys on my team?"

Jiraiya gave him a sideways glance.

"You've always had good instincts, Minato." He sighed, looking at Minato as if he felt sorry for him. "Since you've managed to put those two things together, I guess it wouldn't be fair to keep you in the dark any longer."

Minato swallowed.

"So I was right," he said quietly. "Kakashi and Obito are in the middle of something."

Jiraiya was quiet for a moment.

"When I was a boy, I was summoned to the Great Toad Sage and told that I would train a child who would change the world."

Minato raised an eyebrow.

"I've heard this before," he sighed. "Jiraiya-sensei, I'm not a child of destiny."

Jiraiya chuckled.

"Whatever you want to believe is fine, but I wasn't finished," he said. "I was told of another prophecy. One that I thought was unbelievable, until I had no choice to believe it. The world had already been changed and thrown off its destined path. That two people had stopped one terrible thing happening, opening the world to other unknown destinies."

Minato narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.

"I don't quite understand what this has to do with my students."

"If Jiraiya would hurry up and explain it, then you would."

An unfamiliar voice shocked Minato and he whipped around to see who had approached them without him realising it, only to see that no one as there. He felt the faintest breeze pass him by, and turned, three-pronged kunai in hand. Minato's kunai was blocked by a sword.

"Easy there," Jiraiya said firmly.

Minato narrowed his eyes at the short dark-haired woman who had appeared and was grinning at him. She lowered her kunai, and a moment later, so did Minato. He kept his eyes trained on the woman, who was giving him an appraising look.

"Huh. Maybe Jiraiya's right about you. You might be faster than Tobirama," she said.

Minato frowned. The woman looked a little older than him and so familiar, but he couldn't place her. She was a Leaf shinobi, her headband was pushed back onto the top of her head, with black hair falling to the side and covering her right eye. She was also clearly an Uchiha, given away by her dark features, and the dark purple she wore. Her smile widened.

"Looks like you're having trouble figuring out who I am. Pity. Kakashi knew me right away."

Minato's eyes widened.

"What did you do with Kakashi?" He asked, threateningly.

"We had a conversation. Don't worry your pretty little head, sensei, he's perfectly fine. He's reading a new book."

Minato was really beginning to dislike whoever this woman was. He narrowed his eyes.

"If you did anything to him," he growled.

"Minato, calm down. She didn't do anything to him. She's an ally," Jiraiya said.

Minato didn't look away from the woman, but he relaxed his posture slightly.

"It's good you're protective," she said.

"Minato, this is Ayame Uchiha," Jiraiya introduced her.

Ayame Uchiha…Minato vaguely recalled the name.

"You're…a member of the council," he said slowly.

"Fugaku has been taking my place in absentia," Ayame nodded. "Very good, you're smarter than you look."

He glanced at Jiraiya, who seemed both amused and exasperated.

"She likes testing people," he said by way of explanation of her rudeness.

"Don't spoil him," Ayame scolded Jiraiya. "He needs to rise to occasions without your help."

"I do not require assistance to do my job," Minato said defensively, folding his arms over his chest. "The two of you can stop wasting my time and cut to the chase."

Ayame stared at him and tilted her head and smiled, the cutting edge to her smile was gone, replaced with nostalgia, making her whole face soften.

"She was right about you," Ayame mused. "You have strength."

"Ayame," Jiraiya said warningly.

Ayame glared at Jiraiya.

"Shut up. I'm getting to the point."

Minato raised an eyebrow between the two of them, impatience clear on his face.

"Jiraiya told me you found Sakura's file," Ayame said, turning her attention back to Minato.

Minato nodded, glad they were finally returning to the important topics.

"It was…basic."

"Purposefully," Ayame told him, and Minato's frown deepened. "You saw that her children were blacked out?"

Minato nodded again.

"Well, I have the answer to your questions about them." Ayame closed her eyes and slowly, a purple diamond appeared on her forehead. "I'm Ayame Uchiha. Daughter of Sakura and Madara."

Minato blinked.

"You're too young."

Ayame laughed and pointed at the diamond.

"You do know what this is right?" She asked. "Tsunade isn't the only one who makes herself look younger. I'm thirteen years older than him." She pointed at Jiraiya.

"I don't see why the two of you can't just accept that you're aging," Jiraiya mumbled.

"You look like Madara," Minato said suddenly, realising why she looked so familiar.

Ayame's eyes widened slightly and then she gave a soft chuckle.

"That's the second time I've heard that today. I would think, Minato Namikaze, that you would have slightly more important things to say, I certainly do."

Minato took a deep breath.

"I do. I want to know what Kakashi and Obito have to do with Sakura, your mother."

He wasn't quite sure he believed it, but if Jiraiya did, then he could trust his sensei. Ayame gave him a tight smile.

"Then I think you should read this."

She pulled out a leather bound journal from her obi. Minato reached out to take it, but Ayame didn't let it go.

"Minato."

Her voice dropped low and serious.

"This is not just a matter of history. This is one of my mother's journals, and this book contains more secrets than all the vaults in the village. If you reveal the contents of this to anyone, even to the lovely Kushina, do not doubt that you and everyone you speak to will be dead before the sun sets."

Her eyes glittered, and Minato could feel her killing intent. She was serious.

"If you can promise you'll let this go and never think of it again, and let your students do what they have to without stopping them, then turn around and walk away," Jiraiya said quietly.

Minato looked at him and he shook his head.

"You know I can't do that."

"Then know that there is no going back."

Jiraiya looked at him, his expression solemn and serious, and Minato tightened his hold on the journal. He'd already made his choice. Whatever Kakashi and Obito were involved in, he would help. That list of names gave him a deep sense of unease and foreboding. He needed to know. He wouldn't turn away. Ayame, sensing his resolve, let go of the book.

"I'm going to see the Hokage," she murmured to Jiraiya. "I'll be back later."

Minato looked down at the journal, and just as he was about to open it, Jiraiya grabbed hold of his wrist.

"She means it," he warned Minato. "Ayame does not threaten idly, and she holds the village above everything else. If she wants you dead, even I won't be able to stop her. If you have any questions, I'll be meditating."

Minato watched his sensei walk away with a stomach churning with nerves. The journal was beginning to feel heavy in his hands. He slowly opened it to the first page, and his heart hammered with what he read.

_For Minato Namikaze._

_Maybe you don't believe her, but the woman handing you this book is my daughter, Ayame. Or, it's Jiraiya, if Ayame is dead._

_This isn't easy for me to write, nor will it be easy for you to comprehend. My name is Sakura Haruno. You know me as Sakura Uchiha, formerly Sakura Nara. My life has been a little complicated, but we've met before… about fifty years in the future from now, and that's where I'll start this strange tale._

_The Fourth Shinobi war was brought to an end by someone close to you, who was my best friend. But we didn't expect things to turn out the way they did. My story isn't just about me. It's about the Senju and the Uchiha, and a curse that was broken._

_The Sage of Six Paths had two sons, Asura and Indra. Asura was the progenitor of the Senju and Uzumaki clans. Indra was the first Uchiha. The brothers were best friends and rivals, and it was through the manipulation of a force known as Zetsu, that Indra became twisted._

_Millennia passed, and the curse of the brothers was passed on through the generations, and then it reached Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha. In your life now, Madara and Hashirama were never enemies._ _In my life, they were. Madara defected from the village and like Indra, was manipulated by Zetsu, becoming the greatest threat to the shinobi world that we'd ever seen. When he died, he had a disciple continue his work under Zetsu's watchful gaze…that disciple was your student, Obito Uchiha._ _But Obito was reformed during the war, and the curse was broken by the generation after Hashirama and Madara._

_We theorised that because there were two reincarnations in the same place at the same time, that the chakra of Asura and Indra became sentient. It was because of them that myself and my friend were thrown back in time, to the time of the founders._

_Asura targeted me for my bond with the reincarnations (my best friends), and Indra targeted the brother of the Uchiha - you might know him - Itachi Uchiha, son of Fugaku and Mikoto._

_Itachi and I became the unwitting victims of the brothers, who wanted to put a stop to the events that lead up to the Fourth Shinobi War. And we did. We killed Zetsu, and Madara remained himself: a good man._

_I'm sure that you are bursting with frustration and questions, and I know that this seems outlandish, but please trust that I am only telling you the truth. Of course, some details I've removed because I don't want to influence your future more than I have already. If you need proof, ask Jiraiya or Shikaku Nara. All of them know the truth. Avoid involving the Hokage. He is an ally, and it's not him I'm worried about, it's the eyes around him. The village needs him alive and involved as little as possible._

_But there is more, and this is why I've written this for you, Minato. I was not the only one who came back in time. Maybe you've realised it but can't accept it. Surely you've noticed the changes in them? After all, I'm sure they love you too much be able to hide everything from you for too long. I know myself how hard it is to hide things from the ones you love._

_Just as you are Kakashi's sensei, he was mine._

_The Sage of Six Paths gave them another chance at life, where Obito could live walking the right path, and Kakashi would have back his loved ones, and I'm sure the third one I was told about was Rin._

_I'm sorry for how overwhelming this must be, but understand this: Kakashi, Obito, and Rin are from my past, and from a different future, they're so much more than just children._

_Destroying Zetsu wasn't a mistake, but now everything I worked to protect is threatened, because when one evil is destroyed, another will rise, and I'm afraid this one might be one of my own making._

_I'm sorry, Minato._

_Please protect them._

_Sakura_


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll just make some little notes about the world in general so you can have a better idea of it:
> 
> \- Third Shinobi War: basically the same as canon - Iwa and Konoha are the main aggressors, with Kumo, Suna, and Kiri all involved to varying degrees. It's still in the early-ish stages of it - Minato does not yet have his Yellow Flash Moniker.  
> \- Uzushiogakure (Whirlpool) and the Uzumaki have been destroyed, like canon. Sakura made a small note of it in the last chapter writing to Kakashi. Knowing the future doesn't mean you can change it. This doesn't affect the story much, but you can imagine that this was devastating to Sakura, who was in her 50s at the time.  
> \- A few chapters ago from Kushina's POV, you may have noticed that she referred to the Nine-Tails as Kurama. If you have not read the second installment of this series, you will have missed why this is possible. Basically, in Sacrifice and Surrender Sakura had a confrontation with the Nine-Tails before Mito sealed him, and then entered the mind-scape of Mito. Mito was a very great friend to Sakura, and together they were trying to help Kurama see that they weren't enemies and etc, so that by the time Naruto became the jinchuuriki (if that happens) Kurama might have a different understanding of humans. Mito taught this to Kushina before she passed, and Kushina doesn't really understand or believe that she can truly befriend the Nine-Tails, but she's trying to follow Mito's example.  
> \- Sakura died when Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru were fourteen when she saved Sakumo Hatake, who was the same age as them, thereabouts. So Sakura wrote Minato's note the year before she died.  
> \- It was briefly mentioned that Danzo is part of the council again. There will be more on this later, but the council is not like canon. Prime example: Ayame (Fugaku while she was away) is also a council member. The Uchiha are very much a part of the village, although there will also be more on this later.
> 
>  
> 
> Here is a list of characters current status and ages, etc:
> 
> Hashirama Senju: died, First Shinobi War  
> Tobirama Senju: due to Gold & Silver brothers having been killed during Sacrifice and Surrender, Tobirama did NOT die during First Shinobi War. He died later on   
> Madara Uchiha: died four years before Tobirama   
> Sakura Uchiha: KIA (59yo), Second Shinobi War  
> Mito Uzumaki: died after the transfer of Nine-Tails to Kushina about ten years prior to the story.
> 
> SFP and SS characters:
> 
> Kagami Uchiha: KIA, First Shinobi War  
> Hikari Shimura: KIA protecting Tobirama, End of First Shinobi War  
> Shouta Uchiha: still alive - 78 years old  
> Hiruzen Sarutobi, Third Hokage: 63 years old  
> Danzo Shimura, Hokage Council: 66 years old  
> Ayame Uchiha - Uchiha Clan Princess, Hokage Council Member: 51 years old  
> Tsunade Senju, Hospital Director: 38 years old  
> Nawaki Senju, assistant to the Hokage & Konoha Council member: 33 years old  
> Jiraiya: 38 years old  
> Orochimaru: 38 years old
> 
> \- Note: Ayame was a student of Hiruzen Sarutobi for a time before he became the leader of the baby Sannin's.
> 
> Minato Namikaze: 20 years old  
> Kushina Uzumaki: 20 years old  
> Fugaku Uchiha: 26 years old  
> Mikoto Uchiha: 21 years old  
> Shikaku Nara: early twenties  
> Choza Akimichi: early twenties  
> Inoichi Yamanaka: early twenties  
> Kakashi, Obito, Rin & Guy: 9/10 years old  
> Genma & Ebisu: 11/12 years old  
> Anko & Hayate: 8 years old  
> Shisui: 5 years old  
> Itachi: babbyyyyyy
> 
> I hope this helps to round out the story a little. :)

 

**Chapter 6**

The shinobi world was filled with incredible legends and stories about the shinobi of the past. Of heroic deeds and incredible feats, of things that seemed impossible, and yet they were known to be real and true. Minato knew full well that a shinobi should never disregard something just because it didn't sound like it was real. There were people throughout the world who performed impossible actions every day. Konohagakure was built on an alliance between enemy clans, something everyone considered insane, and yet the way the village had prospered was proof that impossibilities existed.

He had never heard of a shinobi traveling through time, only in stories spun for children, and yet when he considered the possibility of it happening, Minato found he couldn't dismiss it. After all, wasn't the Thunder God technique he used manipulation of the time-space dimension, and he had heard tell of shinobi who used chakra in such a manner that it affected other time-space dimensions. So if it were possible to travel through time itself, instead of just through space, it would be reasonable to assume that the Sage of Six Paths and his supposed sons could do so, as the father of shinobi was apparently the most powerful shinobi that ever existed.

As he pondered this, Minato closed the book he was holding in his hands, took a deep breath and closed his eyes. Minato prided himself on being a man who looked past the surface, who didn't jump to conclusions and saw the big picture. He was calm, thoughtful and rational, and that was the only reason he hadn't thrown the book at Jiraiya and left immediately. Part of his mind scoffed at the idea that Sakura Uchiha was from the future, returned to the past. And yet, a larger part of him was inclined to believe it. He had a lot of questions regarding the passage she had written for him, as there were so many vague details included in it. But before he even considered opening his mouth to voice his concerns, his mind went back to the lines that affected him the most deeply.

That Kakashi, Obito, and Rin were also from the future that Sakura was from. That Kakashi had been Sakura's sensei. His students…. his team… Minato forced himself to stay upright, but his legs felt weak and his hands were shaking. He opened his eyes and looked down at the book, opening the page back up and staring at the paragraph again. Scenes from the last two months came into his mind.

 _Surely you've noticed the changes_.

Kakashi's personality was the complete opposite of what everyone said he was like. Obito had a sudden, unreported or unnoticed increase in skill, chakra, and ability, not to mention his matured Sharingan. Rin's secret smiles and constant watching out for her teammates. The way they seemed to understand each other immediately and work together flawlessly. The atmosphere around the three of them, and the look in their eyes that Minato caught occasionally, that was more like a seasoned shinobi than a fresh genin. More recently, the way that Shikaku had looked at Kakashi and commented on 'a whole lifetime' and Kakashi's flinch at the words. Kakashi cryptically commenting that whatever he wanted to talk about was 'unbelievable' and that Minato would think he was crazy.

Minato swallowed thickly. When he considered everything he'd seen of the three of them, there was nothing else that explained it all so well. Minato looked up startled. That paper he'd found in Kakashi's room. It wasn't just some random scribbles, it was a reminder, he realised. All of their names were on it. His, Rin's, Obito's, Kushina's… Minato found the paragraph Sakura had written.

_All his loved ones…_

Minato stared at the words. Was it possible that in this future Kakashi was the only one still alive? Minato frowned. According to Sakura's words, Obito had turned to the side with the enemy, and somehow Minato had met her. He ground his teeth in frustration. He needed answers, and he needed them now. Minato put the journal in his jacket pocket and walked to find Jiraiya. He made a conscious effort to walk normally, but his frustration seeped out of him, and he clenched his fist.

"Take a seat."

Jiraiya was sitting on the ground, his eyes closed, his fists together in front of his chest, and his feet in the same way. Minato hesitated. He didn't feel like sitting, he was too wound-up.

"Sit."

Jiraiya's tone indicated he wasn't making a suggestion. Minato clenched his jaw and then sat, forcing himself into the same position as his sensei. He breathed deeply.

"When I looked back at my childhood after I found out the truth of Lady Sakura, it made sense," Jiraiya in a calm voice.

Minato gave him a sideways glance.

"She had taken Tsunade as an apprentice almost from the moment she was born. Not because baby Tsunade was anything special, but because Tsunade had been her teacher. She always took me out to eat, telling me stories and teasing me. She helped me in the academy since I was always struggling and encouraged me, telling me I'd fulfill my dreams without a doubt. Lady Sakura took interest in very few people like that, but those she did, I know understand why."

"When did she write that journal?" Minato asked quietly.

Jiraiya opened his eyes and looked at Minato, who dropped his hands.

"When I was thirteen."

Minato swallowed.

"I was there. She wrote it while I was there so that I could tell you this and you'd believe me."

Minato shook his head.

"This is a lot to take in," Minato murmured.

Jiraiya chuckled.

"But I can see you believe it." He clapped Minato on the shoulder. "I knew that you would, and so did she."

Minato shook his head again.

"Jiraiya-sensei. Just - please, tell me what this means." He pointed at the book in his pocket. "Reincarnations? She met me? Obito and Kakashi? It's too vague."

Jiraiya gave a small smile.

"I can only tell you what I know, and I don't know it all. If you want to know, you need to ask them, since they were there. Even Ayame doesn't know everything, though she likes to pretend she does."

"Please tell me what you know," Minato repeated, his voice firmer.

"Lady Sakura only ever told half the truth. Just enough to know, but not enough to fully understand. What I know is that there was a mission that you all thought Obito died in, but he was captured by the true enemy - Zetsu and Madara. His mind was twisted, and when Rin died, he broke and became the leader of a criminal organisation that caused the Fourth Shinobi War. No one knew his true identity until during the war. Sakura's friend and Kakashi helped him turn back to the right path and he aided them in stopping Madara and Zetsu."

Minato frowned.

"But she said she met me."

Jiraiya nodded, looking regretful.

"That's one of the things I don't know. She never elaborated on the reincarnations, or how you were involved. She refused to say anything about it."

Minato pursed his lips.

"I wanted to ask again, but when I tried I found out she'd left the village without permission. It was a few days later that I learned she died, saving Kakashi's father."

Minato suddenly understood why Kakashi had cried that day they read the file on his couch. He wasn't crying for his father: he was crying for her. His eyes widened slightly with the realisation, and he felt burgeoning respect for Lady Sakura through his frustration.

"So what will you do, Minato?" Jiraiya asked. "Your students are more than they appear and you have questions only they can answer."

Minato was quiet. He wasn't sure what he was going to do. Confront them? He could imagine that they'd clam up against him, wave him off. It was hard to reconcile that they were children, but also not. If Minato was being honest, he didn't want to lose the three of them. In the last two months, despite his own reservations about their behaviour and the strangeness that had been around them, Minato had come to feel a strong connection to them.

He questioned if that was due to their influence on him or not. It seemed like he had been their sensei in whatever other life they'd led, and part of him was surprisingly happy to hear that. Still, he couldn't help but feel hurt, whether it was rational or not. If they had been sensei and students before, then the three of them knew him well. If that was the case, why hadn't they come to him sooner with this and told him the truth? He'd been saying since the day he met them that he was there for them, and whether or not they believed him was still in question.

Minato found his resolve. He had to know their story, and he had to know where he stood with them. It was quite obvious to Minato that Ayame and Jiraiya knew that something else was happening in the shinobi world and that they needed Kakashi, Obito, and Rin to help them with it, but Minato found to his own surprise that he didn't care about that as much as he should. He cared about his team.  _His_  team. Whether it was possessive or not, whether they were children or not, Minato felt as protective over them as he ever had. He wanted to help them, to break into the invisible barrier they had around them. Now, armed with the truth of their circumstances, he finally could. He stood, and Jiraiya glanced up at him.

"Tell Ayame I've accepted the truth," he said. "I have questions for her, but first I have a team to talk too."

Jiraiya looked relieved.

"Go off and get your cute little time-traveling genin," he grinned. "I'm going to the hot springs."

Minato couldn't help but roll his eyes before he flickered away in search of his team. He felt Kakashi's chakra at the training grounds still, and hid in the trees at the edge, suppressing his presence and watched him. He sat in the middle of the field, intently reading a book Minato assumed was from Ayame, Sakura's journal. Minato swallowed, suddenly feeling nervous. With a quick hand-sign, Minato made a shadow clone that went off in search of Obito and Rin. Kakashi suddenly fell back on the grass, his arms outstretched, staring up at the clouds. Minato took a deep breath and jumped down from the trees, and Kakashi immediately sat up and stared at him. Minato watched as he reached for the book, and casually put it in his pocket. The eyes of his student were wary as Minato approached.

"Yo sensei," Kakashi greeted him with a lazy wave.

Minato swallowed the lump in his throat and forced himself to speak.

"Hey, Kakashi."

Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

"Are you getting sick?"

Minato chuckled.

"No." He cleared his throat. "New book?" He asked.

Kakashi nodded slowly.

"Good book?" Minato prodded.

"Very… emotional," Kakashi said after a moment.

Minato felt his clone disperse and knew that Obito and Rin were on the way. Rushing over, in fact, since Minato's clone had lied and told them it was an emergency.

"Ah," Minato replied. "I got a new book as well."

He pulled it out of his pocket.

"Well, it's really only a couple of pages long, the rest of the book is blank."

Kakashi's wariness increased.

"That's nice, sensei."

Minato looked down at the book in his hands. He could sense Obito and Rin's approaching charka.

"Here." Minato passed it over to Kakashi, who reached up to take it. "Have a read."

Kakashi gave him a one-shouldered shrug and opened the book. Minato watched as Kakashi stiffened and his hands tightened on the edges of the book. The world seemed to fall even more silent around them, and Minato could feel his heart thumping in his chest.

"I - "

Kakashi broke off whatever he was going to say, his voice seemed strained. Minato opened his mouth to talk, but he found that he couldn't. His lips pressed firmly together. From his position standing, Kakashi looked even smaller than usual. His shoulders were hunched over, his head lowered, his legs crossed. He was just a child in Minato's eyes, no matter what he might be in his own head. Minato lowered himself to his knees and Kakashi slowly raised his head. In his eyes were a myriad of emotions, but most predominant was fear, and that made Minato's breath catch. Minato reached out and wrapped his arms around Kakashi, who froze. It took ten or so seconds of silence for Kakashi to relax, and clear his throat.

"Mm. Minato-sensei, I'm not a kid," he mumbled.

Minato couldn't help the small smile that spread over his face. He pulled back and ruffled Kakashi's hair, he ducked away.

"Says the nine-year-old body you're stuck in."

Kakashi looked away and handed Minato back the book. Minato took it and put it back in his pocket.

"You - " Kakashi paused. "You believe it?"

His voice was quiet, quivering with hope and a little fear. Before Minato could answer, Rin and Obito called out to them.

"Sensei! Kakashi!"

"Bakashi! What's wrong?"

They ran and slid on their knees to be beside Kakashi. Kakashi looked at them, frowning, and uncertain.

"I - I'm fine," he replied.

Rin and Obito exchanged concerned looks.

"Sensei, what happened?" Rin asked.

Minato took a deep breath and saw that Kakashi was waiting to see what he was going to say.

"I spoke with Jiraiya-sensei and woman named Ayame Uchiha," he said after a moment.

Obito frowned.

"Ayame Uchiha?"

"She's on the Hokage Council. She's been out of the village for a while," Minato answered. "She's also the daughter of Madara and Sakura Uchiha."

Obito's mouth gaped slightly and he turned to Kakashi, who was still looking at Minato.

"She told me some things about Sakura," Minato continued. "But I think it's time for the three of you to tell me more, since… since you came from the same future she did."

Rin and Obito froze, and then Obito laughed nervously, while Rin stared at Kakashi.

"Wha - what? Future, what a crazy idea, sensei," Obito stammered.

"Obito, he knows," Kakashi said quietly.

Obito swallowed loudly. Minato almost flinched at the defensive posture the three of them seemed to take against him.

"I - " Minato struggled to find the right thing to say. "I'm your sensei," he settled on. "I believe in you."

Minato didn't expect Rin's eyes to fill with tears. She clutched at Kakashi's sleeve, and then threw herself at Minato, sobbing lightly as she wrapped her arms around his neck, clinging tightly. Minato was shocked still for a moment before he relaxed into a smile and wrapped an arm around her. He looked at Kakashi and Obito over her shoulder and saw that they relaxed their posture. The four of them remained on the training field for a few more minutes, a little too overwhelmed to do or say anything more.

* * *

Ayame stood on the roof outside the office of the Hokage. She knew that he knew she was there, but she made no move to enter the office. She looked out over the village with mixed feelings. This place held a lot of memories for her, and not all of them were nice. She heard Hiruzen's voice drift through the open window.

"It's been quite a while since I've seen you, Aya. Won't you come in?"

Ayame rolled her shoulders.

"I haven't been inside that office since Tobi was the Hokage. What makes you think I'll come in just because you asked?"

She heard his chair squeak slightly as it turned. She glanced back and saw that he was standing at the open window behind her.

"You look old," she commented.

He chuckled.

"I certainly have a few more wrinkles than the last time we saw each other."

He did. There were weary lines around his eyes and permanent frown marks between his eyebrows. Ayame felt a little guilty at being away for so long.

"You are, of course, unchanged," he continued.

"Thank you," she replied, smiling. "One of just has to keep up appearances."

He gave a wry smile.

"Jiraiya has informed me of the intelligence from Iwa. Is there anything you have to discuss?"

Ayame took a deep breath of the crisp air.

"You've never been good at keeping your nose out of other peoples business, Hiruzen. You're too curious for your own good."

"It's my duty to be curious, as it is yours," he replied.

"Hn," Ayame grunted, slightly amused. "You're one of the few people I respect, sensei. I have a feeling Minato will become one of them too."

"Yes," Hiruzen said. "Minato is a very capable shinobi, and far more intelligent than I."

"I heard he graduated with the highest scores ever," Ayame said. "That's quite a feat, considering it was Ryuu who held that honour before him - still, Ryuu was quite a bit younger than Minato was so maybe it's not so impressive."

"Minato is exceptional, equal to Orochimaru, perhaps."

Ayame snorted.

"Don't talk to me about that snake, Hiruzen," she said harshly. "I don't like him, and no matter what you say or how much you defend him, I never will. Minato is more than equal, either way."

The Hokage pursed his lips thoughtfully.

"You're very good at avoiding answering questions, Aya," he said lightly, changing the subject.

"I learned from the best," Ayame sighed. "Mama and Papa had more secrets in their pinkies than the whole village combined."

"Yes, your mother was quite talented at deflection. Your father was even better at glaring and walking away silently."

Ayame's quiet laugh was tinged with sadness.

"I've been told to keep a distant watch over Minato's team."

Ayame raised an eyebrow.

"Jiraiya said that I assume?" She sighed. "You know that I respect your position as Hokage, you know that right?"

"I do."

Ayame turned to face him. He stood with his hands behind his back, in the official Hokage robes, and his hat on. Ayame kneeled before, head lowered.

"Do I have your permission to fulfill the mission left to me by Lord Second, Lord Madara and Lady Sakura without interference and with the promise of full disclosure that the necessary moment?"

She waited there silently for him to speak.

"Rise, Ayame of the Uchiha Clan. Purple Ghost of the Leaf."

Ayame flinched slightly at the moniker she had earned in the months before the Second Shinobi War. She raised her head only.

"I have always and will continue to place my trust in your judgment. I only ask that you keep me informed."

"Thank you, Lord Hokage," Ayame murmured, a flush of relief running through her body.

"Why don't you come inside?" He prompted again. "I'm about to have a guest."

Ayame raised an eyebrow and sighed,

"I already told you - "

There was a knock at the door, and Ayame's eyes widened as she saw who entered. A smile blossomed across her face.

"Nawaki!"

"Hey Aya," Nawaki smiled up at her. "Come give me a hug so I can welcome you home."

The Hokage stepped aside and sat back in his chair behind his desk, and Ayame hesitated. The Hokage's office was… she swallowed, and closed her eyes for a moment, remembering the last time she'd been inside it. Blood; blood on the wall, the floor, and mad, mad eyes. She shivered slightly and opened them to look at Nawaki in his wheelchair, waiting for her. She slowly made her way to the window, her hands on the glass, and feeling his stomach rolling inside her, she dropped down into the room. She stayed focused on Nawaki and walked over to give him the hug he wanted.

"You've gotten old, Nawaki," she smiled, trying to not feel the room pressing in around her.

"You should come to see Tsuna with me," he said.

Ayame winced.

"I don't think she wants to see me."

"She misses you," Nawaki replied.

Ayame changed the subject.

"So how are you doing?"

Ayame looked him over. His legs were thin, she could see that through his pants, but that was what happened when a person was paralysed; their muscles atrophied. But the rest of him looked healthy. His shoulders were broad and filled out his shirt, and the colour was back in his cheeks, with a nice look in his eyes.

"Your hair is still is messed up as ever," she smiled.

"Stop giving me that look." Nawaki rolled his eyes. "I know those medic eyes. You're as bad as Tsuna."

Ayame rolled her own eyes back.

"I'm not much of a medic."

Nawaki laughed.

"Yeah. Sure. Let's see. You're not much of a medic," he counted off on his fingers, "not much of a kenjutsu specialist, sorry kenjutsu  _master,_  not much of a Sharingan wielder, not much of a shinobi at all really." He laughed.

"Now that you two have caught up, shall we discuss the upcoming council meeting?" Hiruzen asked with some fond amusement in his voice.

Ayame felt a creeping sensation all over her skin, she wanted to get out of the room, but she turned to the Hokage.

"Make it quick," she said tightly.

"Very well," he replied. "Tsunade rarely attends meetings these days. She's busy with the medical effort in the war. Nawaki is her go-between, as well as having his own seat on the council - "

Ayame looked down at Nawaki and winked at him.

"Moving up in the world, Little Nawaki?" She teased.

He just gave her a small shake of his head.

"- alongside Koharu, Homura and Danzo."

Ayame stiffened.

"Danzo?" She asked. "When did this happen?"

"Three years ago," Nawaki replied, his voice mirroring her own feeling of distaste.

"Interesting choice, Lord Hokage," Ayame said through a clenched jaw.

"It was a necessary decision for a more rounded viewpoint," he answered simply.

"Yes. Inbred prejudice against an entire clan is a wonderful quality in a village leader," Ayame replied sarcastically. "Excuse me." She walked back to the window. "I have clan business to attend to."

She jumped out the window and disappeared, leaving no trace of her presence, like the ghost she had been named.

* * *

Obito had never been able to sort through his feelings by sitting still. He needed to be active. After the revelations at the training field, that Minato knew about the truth of their origins, he needed to move. He headed for one of the secluded and private Uchiha training areas and worked on his accuracy with multiple targets and multiple weapons, an Uchiha specialty. As he worked, his mind cleared. It was good, he decided, that Minato knew now. This way, Obito could control what he discovered about Obito's own past. The flow of information could be contained. An unfamiliar female voice snapped Obito out of his thoughts.

"So, you're  _Tobi."_

His Sharingan activated and his body tensed at the name and inflection of mocking in the tone. He spun and threw a kunai into the trees behind him.

"Who's there?" Obito demanded.

"It's cute you're trying to act all tough, but you're stuck in a little brats body and it's not working out so well."

His eyes searched the trees and narrowed when he couldn't find the source of the voice.

"Boo."

Obito was shocked to see her suddenly appear in front of him. He didn't step away. He just looked at her grinning face.

"I assume you're Ayame," he said after a moment.

Her smile turned pleased.

"Nice to meet you. Big fan," she said. "Well. I'm not a big fan of the whole trying to shove the world into a chakra-sucking dream to get your dead girlfriend back in your own fantasy world," she shrugged. "But I'm a fan of your ambition."

Obito clenched his jaw.

"Who are you?" He asked again. "You look enough like Madara to be his daughter, but Sakura was never as rude as you."

Ayame's smile fell and her eyes narrowed.

"I don't think you have a right to speak about either of my parents as if you truly knew them,  _Tobi."_

 _"Don't_  call me that," Obito snapped angrily.

Ayame stepped back.

"If you don't want the rest of our clan come and investigate, I suggest you reign in your killing intent."

Obito glared at her, but he did as she said. He took a deep breath.

"What do you want from me?" Obito questioned her.

"My mother believed in you, she believed that people changed. I believe that people change, but my experience hasn't been that people change for the better, and especially not from our clan."

She stepped closer, and Obito felt the slow spread of menacing chakra release from her and surround him.

"If you make one step in the wrong direction, Obito Uchiha. I'll be there. Oh, I won't be there to drag you back into the light, to the right path. I don't give second chances. I'll be there to end your life so thoroughly that even the Sage won't be able to bring you back again," she threatened.

Obito had spent his life around the most dangerous shinobi from all nations. He knew how to discern the rotten from the pure, the liars from the honest, the fakers from the real. He knew instinctively that the woman before him was not lying, and for the first time in a long time, he felt very real fear in his bones. Ayame Uchiha was terrifying, and his eyes shifted to his Mangekyo Sharingan automatically.

"I'm glad to see you understand," she said, rolling back her chakra.

Obito swallowed and clenched his hands when he realised they were shaking.

"Now that's over and done with." Ayame stepped back and smiled again, this time it seemed softer. She held out her hand. "I'm Ayame."

Wary and dazed, Obito shook her hand.

"Obito," he replied automatically.

"Want to help me protect our clan?"

He nodded and saw that she was waiting for a verbal response. He cleared his throat.

"Yes," he said.

"Good." She sounded satisfied. "Come walk with me. I want to see how things have changed while I've been away. After that, we'll do something fun, okay?"

Obito followed her obediently. They walked through the Uchiha District and he was amazed at the way she was received. People whispered and pointed, they waved and smiled. They greeted her warmly and called her Princess.

"Princess?" Obito asked, hesitant to even speak to her.

She shrugged.

"Well. You know who my father is."

Obito wondered if they'd ever seen their  _Princess_  threaten someone before. He felt like he was in a daze as she seemed to switch personalities as she flitted around the Uchiha District. She stopped for senbon, greeting the owners of the shop like old friends, and introduced him to them like he was her son.

"You're confusing," he muttered.

Ayame looked down at him with a smile.

"Just don't try and destroy the world and I won't have to kill you," she replied.

Obito could only stare at her and she laughed.

"Relax, kid. I promise I'm nice."

"I don't think I believe you," he mumbled. He peered up at her. "So why do you have one Sharingan activated, and why is it covered by your hair? Isn't it draining?"

She glanced at him.

"Not really," she replied. "My mother was Sakura Uchiha, do you really think my chakra control is poor?"

"Just asking," Obito responded with a shrug. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

She was quiet for a while as they walked.

"I'm blind in that eye," she said after a while.

Obito looked at her in surprise.

"Well. Almost," she corrected. "Don't look so shocked. I'm not as young as I look, you know. I've survived three wars so far."

He frowned.

"What about your other eye?"

In response to that, she only gave him a secretive smile.

"That's a longer story for another time," she told him.

She stopped at the end of the street. Before them was the old Uchiha Compound. Only the clan elders used the building as a meeting place. It was mostly abandoned.

"What are we doing here?" Obito asked her.

She looked down at him as if the answer were obvious.

"It's my house."

Obito's eyes widened in shock.

"What?!"

"I thought you were a criminal mastermind." She sighed. "Hashirama built this house for my father. This is where I grew up. Princess, remember?" She pointed at herself. "Come on and help me clean up, and then we can talk properly."

Obito groaned.

"Clean up? No thanks. I thought you said something  _fun._ "

Ayame raised an eyebrow.

"You do realise that you are a  _genin,_  I am a jonin, council member and your social superior? The most superior, in fact. That wasn't a request, that was an order."

Obito huffed.

"I don't think I like you."

"Yeah. I get that a lot. I don't think your sensei likes me either."

"Minato likes everyone, what did you do to him?" Obito asked, following her into the compound.

She shrugged.

"What do you mean? I didn't do anything. We just had a conversation."

"That explains it," Obito muttered.

Ayame laughed.

"I like you, Obito. Please don't disappoint me," she said. "Don't disappoint my mother."

"I won't," he sighed, feeling exhausted by the whirlwind of her personality. "I swear it."

* * *

Kakashi let the cooling water of his shower run over his body. His head was lowered, and streams of water flowed from his hair down his cheeks and onto the cool tiled floor. He watched it absently pour down the grated drain, his mind occupied by other things. Minato knew, and he… believed them. Kakashi could hardly wrap his head around it. He lifted his head and ran both his hands through his hair before slowly turning off the taps to his shower and reaching for his towel. He sighed as he used it to dry himself off, then wrap around his waist, higher than he usually would. The towel was just a little too big for his nine-year-old self.

He stood before the sink, kicked out the little stand with distaste, and stood on it to give himself a better view of his face in the mirror. His face was smooth, unblemished. The skin of a child. His eye was always a little startling for him, but he was getting used to seeing his face without the scar. Sometimes, when he put on his headband, he caught himself from pulling it down to cover his eye. There were some things he had found he enjoyed about being a kid again; the lack of responsibility for one. It had been like a holiday almost. The six years leading into the war had been full of an almost constant need for him to be on alert. Not that he was complaining, but he was just a little tired and weary.

Kakashi was torn between feeling pleased by the occasional shows of affection Minato gave him, like the short hug at the training field earlier, and ashamed for both wanting and needing it. Physiologically, he responded to them as the age his body was; all children needed to feel safe and comforted at times. Psychologically he was torn between the child inside him and the man he'd become, both of whom had simply missed his sensei desperately through the years and reveled in his attention again. Now that Minato knew he wasn't exactly a child, Kakashi wondered if those paternal instincts Minato had would change. Wasn't it strange for him?

Kakashi felt a prickle of unease at the thought of the relationship between them changing. Minato had always been something between an older brother and a mentor to him, sometimes Kakashi had even thought of him as a fatherly figure. He was certainly the most constant guardian he'd had after Sakumo died. Not that the younger Kakashi had ever noticed or realised it until years later. He swallowed the lump forming in his throat and walked out into his room to change his clothes. He dressed casually, in one of his singlets with a mask on it and pulled it up, and over it he put on a black t-shirt and his worn in training pants before padding barefoot back into the bathroom and hanging up his towel.

There were so many things left unsaid at the field. After Rin's outburst, they had all gone home to gather their thoughts and calm down. Kakashi had skimmed through the rest of Sakura's journal, which was mostly filled with stories about the people Kakashi knew: his father, the third Hokage, Tsunade, Jiraiya and occasionally Orochimaru. He could still barely believe that Sakura had known his father, but he was glad, and when he looked further back into his memories of his childhood in this time, there were stories of Sakura from his father in there as well.

Kakashi walked into his bedroom again and took the picture of Team Minato off the window sill. He sat on the bed and stared at it. He couldn't… Kakashi's chest felt tight suddenly. He couldn't lose what they had. It was too soon for Minato to know. They weren't… established yet, and Kakashi couldn't accept that Minato was just okay with knowing the truth. It was too much with too little time to really get to know them.

"Kakashi?"

Kakashi's head snapped up and he saw that very man standing in his bedroom doorway. Minato was looking at him with concern and Kakashi tensed.

"How did you get in here?" Kakashi asked.

A flash of guilt crossed Minato's face.

"I uh - it's not the first time I've bypassed your seals," he admitted.

Kakashi's hands tightened on the frame he was holding. Minato glanced down at the picture.

"There's a lot to talk about," he said quietly.

Kakashi nodded. He put the frame back on his window sill, wondering why Minato had come, and when he'd broken into his house.

"When did you come here before?" Kakashi asked, narrowing his eyes.

"After I followed the three of you and saw you having a secret meeting here and then found the seals. It's good work, by the way," Minato said.

"So you were spying on us?" Kakashi accused.

He was right, no matter what Minato said, there wasn't enough time to build the amount of trust they needed. Minato studied him.

"You don't believe in me, do you?" He asked, a slight waver in his voice.

Kakashi clenched his jaw. He fought against the part of him that didn't want to disappoint his sensei but didn't reply, just in case that voice was the one that spoke. Minato's gaze didn't shift from Kakashi.

"If I could form another conclusion that was more plausible, I would. But from what I've seen over the last two months, what I've heard from both Jiraiya-sensei and Ayame, there is no other scenario that makes sense," Minato said evenly. "I have suspected there was more to you three than meets the eyes since the beginning. This revelation, although admittedly surprising, isn't shocking me as much as it is confirming my own thoughts."

Kakashi considered his words and gave a slow nod, pushing down the bubbling hope he was feeling that maybe he didn't need to worry so much.

"Adding to a scrap of paper I found under your bed, I can see things in a different light," Minato continued.

Kakashi frowned.

"What scrap?" He asked, leaning forwards to peek under the bed.

He caught sight of a piece of white and reached for it. When he read it, he froze. It was a careless slip for him to not realise that the scrap wasn't away with the other scrolls and notes. If anyone other than Minato had found it, Kakashi might've been in real trouble. He scrunched up the paper into his fist.

"You didn't say anything."

"What was I supposed to say?" Minato responded. "I didn't understand it, or know how to approach you."

Kakashi swallowed.

"I can't believe you broke into my house," he muttered.

"Well. It did take a few minutes," Minato said sheepishly.

Kakashi gave him a look of slight amusement and annoyance. Minato walked across the room and picked up the team photo Kakashi had been holding a few minutes ago.

"I remember the look on your face when this was taken," Minato said softly. "You looked overtaken, pain and joy. Something I see on seasoned shinobi more than children. I attributed it to your genius or something like that. Now, I'm guessing that at some point, you were the only one of us left."

Kakashi looked at his bare feet, that almost but not quite touched the ground, hanging off his bed.

"Sakura's message to me said that Obito became a villain of sorts." Minato let out a deep sigh and placed the photograph back. "Kakashi." Kakashi looked up at him. "I don't want you to tell me about my fate, or Kushina's. Tell me only what I need to know when I need to know it."

"Sensei?" Kakashi was surprised.

Minato gave a wry smile.

"As much as I'd like to know more, I don't want the knowledge that might affect outcomes in situations that need my mind clear and present."

Kakashi closed his eyes, the hope he felt bubbling was not able to be contained any longer.

"You…you really do believe us," he whispered.

"I do," Minato said firmly.

Kakashi turned his face away, his eyes growing wet. He cursed his young body for being so susceptive to emotion.

"So, why don't you tell me about her?" Minato said, taking a seat on the floor across from Kakashi.

"Who?" Kakashi asked thickly.

"Sakura, of course." Minato's voice was a little lighter. "She was your student, wasn't she, and the whole reason we're all together right now. I'd like to hear about her, from your point of view."

Kakashi could do that. He could tell Minato about Sakura. Not, he realised, about Naruto or Sasuke if Minato was serious about not wanting to know things that could affect his judgment. He smiled under his mask, and pushed himself back on his bed, leaning against the wall.

"Ah, where to start?" He mused, falling back into a more familiar pattern of speech. "Sakura was… annoying."

He was sure Sasuke would forgive him for stealing that particular description of her, although he didn't think Sakura would.

"Annoying?" Minato asked surprised.

"Only in the beginning. You see, she was more sheltered and naive about the world than my other two students, and she acted like it. But… things happened, and she grew up and understood what it meant to be a shinobi." Kakashi chuckled. "Actually, all my students trained under the Sannin and became legends in their own ways. Sakura trained under Tsunade. She became strong, scarily strong."

Kakashi glanced at Minato and saw that he was listening with a soft smile on his face. They passed the night like that, with Kakashi regaling Minato of his adventures with Team Seven, never giving too much away, and by the time his young body was too tired to stay awake, Kakashi fell into a restful sleep under Minato's watchful gaze.

* * *

Obito was shocked awake by the sound of something big and heavy crashing through the wooden wall, breaking it and causing the house to shake slightly. He ran out of the bedroom Ayame had forced him to sleep in after cleaning out her house - her giant house - and activated his Sharingan as he sprinted towards the sound of shouting and the compounding of charka in the courtyard. He froze at what he saw. Ayame was dodging large chairs and tables being thrown at her by Tsunade Senju.

"A WHOLE DAY!" Tsunade was roaring. "A WHOLE DAY AND YOU DIDN'T COME AND EVEN CHECK ON ME!"

Behind her, a man in a wheelchair was watching the whole event with a tired and exasperated look on his face.

"Tsuna - "

Ayame was cut off by the stool that came flying at her.

"DON'T CALL ME TSUNA!"

Obito could only stare in awe at the sight he was witness too. Tsunade enraged was incredible to behold.

"Tsuna, calm down," the man said.

"SHUT UP, NAWAKI!"

Obito saw several Uchiha shinobi appear at the gates and then slowly back away, not wanting to incur the wrath of Tsunade by accident.

"I'm sorry!" Ayame cried out. "I didn't think you wanted to see me!"

"OF COURSE I DON'T WANT TO SEE YOU."

This was very confusing to Obito, and clearly to Ayame as well.

"Then why - "

"IT WAS A FUNERAL, YOU IDIOT. I WAS EMOTIONAL!"

"I know - but you told me to never talk - "

Tsunade roared again in frustration. Fugaku appeared at the gate and walked slowly to stand beside Nawaki.

"No, Tsunade, don't - " Ayame suddenly shouted. "The house - it's foundations!"

Obito's eyes widened when he saw Tsunade preparing to punch the ground. He moved without thinking much about it and appeared in front of Tsunade, who only just managed to pull her punch. Ayame gasped, Fugaku and Nawaki stared at him like he was insane. Obito thought for a moment that he was.

"Don't destroy the house your grandfather built," he said to her.

Tsunade narrowed her eyes. Obito suddenly felt himself being pulled back.

"What are you doing, Obito?" Ayame hissed. "She could have killed you!"

Obito looked at her for a moment.

"Yeah. I don't know either. Why would I help you, slave driver?"

Tsunade barked a laugh.

"He knows you well, Ghost."

Ayame flinched.

"Don't call me that, Tsunade," Ayame said quietly.

They stared at each other fiercely and Obito backed away from the both, creeping over to where Fugaku and Nawaki were.

"You've been out in the field for a long time," Tsunade said sternly after what seemed like a long time of tense silence. "You're due for a check-up at the hospital. If you don't show up there today, I'll come back and drag you out of your house."

With that, she swiftly turned and walked out of the courtyard and into the street. Nawaki sighed as she went.

"I told you she missed you," he said.

Ayame looked at him in despair.

"She destroyed my house!" She pointed at the massive hole in the wall. "And my furniture!"

He grinned.

"Exactly."

"We'll be sending you the repair bill," Fugaku said to him.

Nawaki sighed again.

"Fine, fine." Then he looked at Obito. "Not many people dare to interfere with my sister when she's in a rage. That was brave."

"Foolish is a more apt description," Fugaku commented.

Obito was shocked when he realised that this was  _Nawaki Senju_. He was alive, that was why Tsunade was still in the village this time around. Obito scratched the back of his head and grinned broadly.

"She seems nice. I didn't think she'd want to destroy the house," he said smoothly.

Ayame snorted behind him and he ignored her.

"You're right about that," Nawaki said. "What's your name?"

"Obito Uchiha," he said. "I'm going to be Hokage!"

Nawaki's eyes widened and then he gave a soft smile.

"A fine dream," he said in a quieter voice. "I'll be seeing you around then, Obito. Fugaku. Ayame."

He nodded to the others and then wheeled away. Obito wondered why he seemed so somber suddenly.

"What are you doing here?" Fugaku asked.

"Obito kindly offered to help me clean up the house," Ayame said.

This time it was Obito that snorted.

"So I let him sleep here. The poor kid was exhausted."

Obito rolled his eyes.

"Whatever she said," he muttered.

He had a feeling life was going to get really interesting with Ayame Uchiha around, where he liked it or not.

 


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is the last chapter for PART ONE. it's a little shorter than the other chapters, a bit of a wrap-up, covering a longer period of time and setting up the next parts. the next part of the story will be… PART TWO: THE CHUNIN EXAMS
> 
> Also:  
> \- As for Obito swearing on Sakura, not Naruto, to be good, the reasons for this are simple: Sakura is the reason for no Zetsu and no evil Madara, which were major influences on him. He's very grateful to her and is learning about what changes she's made in the village. Also, he fought by her side during the 4th shinobi war and respects her abilities, and Ayame doesn't have anything to do with Naruto, so she doesn't give him an option to swear by him. Obito also doesn't bring him up outside of discussions with Kakashi and Rin since they're the only ones who know him.
> 
> \- Shisui and Itachi will be in the story sparingly.

 

**Chapter 7**

It was surprising to all the members of Team Minato that the revelation of their time-traveling origins caused very little disruption to their dynamics as a team. After a few days, things settled down quite naturally and any hysteria or disbelief was forgotten or pushed aside in favour of planning how they could keep away unnecessary attention and continue in their lives without any major changes. It was immediately obvious to all of them, Minato in particular, that whatever it was that Sakura was warning them about in her messages - this new evil that replaced Zetsu - would require them to have full use of their true abilities and skills. But exposing that to the village would be disastrous: all eyes would be on Obito and Kakashi, and they needed to keep a lower profile for as long as they could.

Kakashi allowed Minato to look over the chakra restraints he'd created for himself and Obito, and make minor adjustments to them since Minato was far more talented in fuinjutsu than he was. They had to keep their chakra levels at a level that would be explainable for their relative ages. Only in an emergency, like on a mission, Minato told them they could deactivate the seals, and really the only time they would need to was if they were facing a situation where it was life or death, which wouldn't happen for a while at least.

Minato apologised to Rin for denying her a medical-ninjutsu teacher and promised to arrange one for her as soon as possible. She was pleased with the news and thanked him. Obito's Sharingan was already a secret between Fugaku, Minato and the team, and that would continue until they took they passed the chunin exams.

The chunin exams became the topic of discussion for the team. They had another year before they were legally allowed to take the exams, according to Konoha law. Kakashi was surprised and glad to learn that it was a law that Sakura had pushed Tobirama to pass to protect the children of the village; that to become a chunin, shinobi had to be at least ten years old. Special cases were rare, like Kakashi, and given a probationary status of 'special chunin' until they came of age. Minato questioned them on whether or not they wanted to take the exams at ten or wait longer. Rin explained that in their past lives, she and Obito had failed the exams at eleven and Kakashi had passed. When they were thirteen, Kakashi had become a jonin, and Rin and Obito had passed the chunin exams.

Kakashi believed that if they passed the exams at eleven, it would draw a lot of unwanted attention to them. Minato responded that the Hokage would think it odd that a team that had been so advanced at nine wouldn't be advanced to chunin early. Obito argued that it would be better if they became chunin, because then they could venture outside the village more often. In the end, they decided to enter the exams at the same time as Might Guy, although Obito was less than pleased about it. Rin suggested it was a good plan because it would keep to the timeline they knew and remembered, and Minato agreed with her. Obito refused to fail the exam on purpose, and Kakashi tiredly explained that he didn't have too. If things were the same as the last time, they would be able to influence the exams in a way that ensured they all passed. There were things that were going to change in their timeline, and none of them could stop it.

When they all met with Ayame and Jiraiya, Team Minato was left frustrated and annoyed. Ayame only outlined their vague mission: t _o protect Konoha from enemies seeking to destroy it_ and told them that their first task was keeping an eye on the Uchiha heir, Itachi. When they questioned her why he was in danger, she told them that it was precautionary and to watch out for any strange activity around him. When Minato asked if it had to do with time-travel, she responded with a 'yes' and refused to elaborate. Ayame went on to explain that about forty years ago, there was an attack on the village and that it was widely believed that her mother killed the enemy. Ayame told them that it was very unlikely she succeeded, however, and that part of the reason she and Jiraiya spend so much time traveling outside the village is that they are looking for any sign of this enemy being alive still. Obito asked if they had found anything, and Jiraiya answered that they had.

The second task Team Minato was assigned was to keep an eye on the activities of Orochimaru and Danzo. Minato was surprised to hear this, and when he realised that none of his team were, he grew concerned. Ayame suggested that he allow the kids to take care of those two so that he wouldn't be affected when he was out on missions for the village, and Minato flat out refused to entertain the idea. He was committed to protecting the village from inside and outside threats as a shinobi of the Leaf. Kakashi questioned if those two had any connections to this vague enemy Ayame and Jiraiya talked about, and they replied that it was uncertain about Danzo and Ayame commented that she was sure Danzo would prefer to kill the enemy rather than ally with them, but it was likely with Orochimaru.

With their vague missions received, daily life continued much in the same way for Team Minato. Occasionally Ayame presented Kakashi with new journals from her mother, and Kakashi reveled in reading them thoroughly, often several times over, and soaking in every word. Learning about Sakura's life in her new world was fascinating, and the things she did had a lasting effect on the village as a whole, although many people didn't realise it. For example, the Hokage Council. The Head of the Hospital was immediately made a member of it, ensuring that it was not just the view of the village military that ruled over Konoha, but also from the health and well-being. Also, with Madara having remained in the village, the council had seats for a representative of the Uchiha and Senju Clans. It gave those clans a higher standing in the village, but it seemed to be accepted by the other clan heads, as far as Kakashi was able to discover. Tsunade and her brother were the last two true Senju, much like in the time before, with Tsunade being the last. The First and Second Shinobi wars had decimated the clan, who was targeted in an attempt to stop any new Hashirama's from being born.

Kakashi also accidentally found himself the target of a young fan and rival. One afternoon, Team Minato had been given a mission at the Academy to demonstrate and aide in the youngster's taijutsu lessons. At the end of the lesson, he was approached by Shisui Uchiha, who demanded to fight him. Kakashi agreed, and although he earned glares of disapproval from Rin and the instructor, he beat Shisui like the little kid was a fly. He refused to go easy on the boy, knowing that Shisui would hate it and that it was disrespectful to a child as skilled as him. Shisui became to Kakashi was Konohamaru had been to Naruto. It was amusing to him. Between his challenges with Might Guy (of which he was winning by an increasing amount due to his refusal to show Guy any mercy), and the surprise attacks, interesting rivalry matches, and adoration shown to him from Shisui, Kakashi found himself enjoying life a lot more than he had thought he would.

Obito trained daily with Fugaku and found himself slowly gaining more respect within his clan, which he was pleased about. The elders were slower to accept him since he remained outspoken and animated in his personality, but he was working on gaining their approval through his skills. He spent time with Mikoto and Fugaku outside of training to help with Itachi, who was growing into a quiet and observant infant who preferred to sit quietly and play with his blocks or in the garden than with his toy shuriken and kunai. Obito felt torn between trying to convince his parents to let Itachi chose his own path, and helping him to become a shinobi. Itachi, Obito realised, was a lot kinder than he'd ever let on. He felt increasingly guilty that the boy wouldn't have a choice in his lifestyle - he was just too talented. Even for an infant, his reflexes and problem-solving were incredibly advanced.

Obito slowly mended the damage between himself and Kushina, and Minato was almost afraid to ask what had happened between Obito and Kushina in the past for Obito to have reacted so strongly to her. Still, he was glad that they were getting along and getting along, violently well at times. Obito quickly became Kushina's favourite, for his spunk, mostly.

Rin and Obito continued their taijutsu training daily, and on top of their team training and missions, Rin began further instruction in medical-ninjutsu at the hospital a few times a week alongside the slightly older Shizune. When Tsunade was in the village, she was the one that gave them lessons, but when she was gone, an older Uchiha woman named Sakiko, or any other available medics helped to supplement their lessons. Rin was glad to be challenged by such demanding teachers in Tsunade and Sakiko, but she often questioned how she had managed to so easily secure Tsunade as a teacher. She found out after a few months that it was Ayame who had organised it for her after Minato had mentioned that Rin was a medic in passing. Rin began to like Ayame a little better after that.

The missions they took varied from D-to-B ranks, depending on when Minato was in the village. As the months passed and the war began to intensify, he was gone increasingly more often, as were many of the jonin and chunin. It fell to teams like Team Minato to perform many different tasks in the village, and they quickly gained a split reputation of tardiness and efficiency. Minato found himself having to excuse his student's perpetual lateness more often than he liked, and no amount of scolding worked to change it.

Ayame kept her distance from them, except Obito, who complained daily that she was an overbearing demon lady that wouldn't leave him alone, and exploded when Kakashi commented that Obito had become Ayame's pet. Despite his grumblings, it was clear that Obito had grown fond of Ayame, and even Minato warmed up to her a little at a time as he began to see through her hardened exterior to the surprisingly compassionate and generous woman within. Though he still found her irritatingly vague and challenging to deal with.

It took a year for Minato and Kushina to finally tie the knot and marry. Every time they thought they would be able to, a mission interrupted their plans. In that year, Minato had made a name for himself on the battlefield. He'd been dubbed Konoha's Yellow Flash by their enemies, and when word of this reached the village and his team found out his nickname, all the could do was sigh and say 'finally' which Minato was amused by. It seemed that his new moniker wasn't so new to them at all. When he and Kushina finally married, it was celebrated by the village but kept quiet and Kushina kept her Uzumaki name. Minato's enemies were increasing, and Kushina was often a target for her jinchuuriki status. It was safer for both of them to keep their union quiet.

They moved into a little home on the top floor of a nice building close to the center of the village. They were both pleasantly surprised to find that occasionally they'd wake up to find Kakashi had broken in at some time during the night and curled up on their couch to sleep. After discreetly questioning Rin as to why it was happening, Minato understood that Kakashi had spent a long time repressing his desire to be with the team again. It was a show of how deeply connected Kakashi felt to the team. Minato bought a pillow and blanket just for him, decorated with puppies on clouds.

The bingo books were updated. Minato, who had been previously listed as 'Very Dangerous,' was now given a 'Flee On Sight' order from three nations. He wasn't sure that he ought to have been congratulated as much as he was for that. When he investigated the other shinobi from Konoha with a flee on sight order, he found that alongside Sakumo Hatake and the Sannin, Ayame was also listed. The reemergence of Konoha's Purple Ghost had been noted in all five nations and was making Konoha even more of a target in the war.

Ayame had earned the moniker in the months before Second Shinobi War within the village, and during the war outside it, Minato discovered. Much like his own moniker, she had been dubbed so because of her abilities, yet it had nothing to do with her Sharingan which only made her more formidable. She was known as a 'ghost' because even sensors of Minato's caliber struggled to locate her. Her control of her chakra and ability to suppress it to nothing made her virtually undetectable. Added to that her speed which was whispered to be so fast it was as if she used the same technique as Minato, she was able to infiltrate and slip behind enemies lines and be gone before they'd even known she was there. Minato mentioned the name in passing to her and quickly discovered that to avoid bodily injury, it was wise not to call her by that name to her face. It seemed there was more to her story than he knew, and he didn't press her further.

Half a year after the wedding between Minato and Kushina, and after almost a year and a half of watching Itachi with no concerns, Ayame's precautions around the baby finally paid off. She felt the presence of the person she'd been half-hoping and half-dreading was still alive, and she knew that the time was quickly approaching when the village would be facing a war on two fronts, with only a handful of shinobi facing the more dangerous threat.

* * *

As the hour ticked over from three fifty-nine to four in the morning, Kakashi Hatake frowned in his sleep, his jaw clenched and unclenched a moment. He woke slowly, a pit of unease opening in his stomach. A gust of wind blew through his open window and his team photo fell forward. He heard the crack of glass and sat up to pick it up and lay it down. He tried to settle back into sleep but found he couldn't. The pit of unease seemed to widen in his stomach, and all he could think was that the cracked photo was an omen. Kakashi had a hunch, and he just hoped it wasn't right.

* * *

Rin Nohara's eyes were heavy with tiredness. Her candle was dying, and the light was fading. She needed to get to sleep, but she was behind in her studies. They'd been so busy with missions that she'd neglected her medical ninjutsu studies and she did not want to face the wrath of Lady Tsunade or Sakiko.

The wind blew outside, rattling her window shutters, and the hairs on her arm stood up. Rin shivered, suddenly feeling unsettled. She looked out the window as a cloud moved across the moon, obscuring its light and she frowned. Something was wrong, she could feel it. She just couldn't figure out what it was.

* * *

Obito Uchiha replaced the towel on his grandmother's fevered forehead and sat back tiredly. She gave him a little smile through her haze of sickness, and he gripped her hand comfortingly. He swallowed as he looked at her thin face, feeling worried for her. She was kind and gentle, he didn't want to lose her.

He heard the clock strike four and the little bell that tolled sent a jolt down his spine. The sound had been ominous. His grandmother drifted into a delirious dream, muttering something about the return Uchiha Dragon. Obito barely heard her, his skin crawled and he tried to shake off the growing feeling of foreboding, but couldn't.

* * *

Deep inside the borders of Amegakure, Minato gratefully accepted the hot tea that his teammates passed around. As soon as his hand wrapped around the cup and he began to bring it to his lips, it cracked. Minato froze and lowered the cup. He stared at the crack in the porcelain.

"A bad sign," he murmured.

He left the tea untouched.

* * *

Ayame's eyes snapped open. She lay in her bed unmoving for a moment before she slowly slipped out of her bed, slipped on her robe and picked up her sword. She moved quietly through her house until she reached outside. Once out, she paused and cast out her senses, her grip tightening on her sword when she felt his presence in a place that made her panic. She ran silently towards the home of Fugaku and Mikoto, suppressing her presence the way she usually only reserved for fights against enemies outside Konoha.

She found him standing over the crib of Itachi and her heart hammered in her chest. The child was awake. He stared at the man and his little body trembled, but he didn't make a sound. The boy was perceptive, and Ayame silently unsheathed her sword and held it against the man's neck.

"There's no need for that Ayame," the man said in a gravelly voice.

She bared her teeth at the back of his head. It took everything inside her not to kill him where he stood, but she knew that it wouldn't do any good. It was only a clone.

"Where's your real body, Ryuu?" She hissed.

He gave a single amused chuckle.

"Why should I tell you?" He replied.

Slowly, Ryuu Uchiha turned and Ayame saw the face of her twin brother for the first time in thirty-eight years. His hair was medium length, a mix of black and grey, pushed back from his face and spiking out at the back. His headband, worn around his forehead and secured with a black band, shone in the darkness, a deep cut across the Leaf symbol. He only had one eye, that was open and staring at her. The other was a grotesque, empty socket, scarred and disfigured from an attack that had torn it from his head. He looked his age, fifty-two, just like her. Ayame's gaze drifted to his body. He had only one arm that hung loosely at his side and wore clothes in the style that their father used to wear: black, high-necked, Uchiha. She felt disgust rise in her as she looked at his face, that was too like Madara's for her liking. He didn't deserve that face. She glared at him.

"Careful, Aya, I might get my feelings hurt if you look at me like that."

He spoke to her like they were having a casual conversation, unconcerned and even amused.

"Step away from the child," she growled.

Ryuu obliged, taking a step around until they were both at equal distance from the child, facing each other with Ayame's sword still at his neck. Itachi watched them silently.

"I will find you and finish what our mother started," Ayame threatened him.

Ryuu gave her a smile.

"You want to kill me, Aya? Please. Do your best."

His voice was smug and she glared at him harder.

"If only looks could kill," Ryuu lamented. "Won't you give your long lost brother a hug?"

He reached out to her as if to embrace her as if the sword was nothing, and she stepped back.

"Don't touch me," she hissed.

"Calm down, little sister. You're killing intent will scare the boy."

He gave her a lazy smile and she felt rage turn her eyes red and spin black with the Mangekyo. Her killing intent rose, and she took a step closer to Itachi, turning him so that she stood with her back to the boy, protecting him. She reached out and wrapped a hand around his neck, pressing the tip of her sword into him, uncaring that it was just a clone.

"You will never lay a finger on Itachi," she hissed. "You will never touch Kakashi, never touch Obito or Rin or Minato. I will destroy you before you destroy everything our mother worked to build."

He looked at her impassively.

"Is that all?"

Ayame twisted her lips into a sneer.

"You think you're something special, Ryuu. You always have. But you're not special, you're just another twisted mind that will end up dead and defeated like all the rest of them."

Ryuu's single eye glittered with anger at her words.

"Be careful, Ayame," he said in a low voice. "The next time you see me, I'll be taking my eye back. Or…" He gave her a cutting smile that made her shiver. "Maybe I won't need too."

From the corner of her eye, she saw Fugaku and Mikoto appear at the doorway behind Ryuu. Ryuu turned his head slightly to see them. He looked back at Ayame with a smirk.

"I'll be seeing you again, little sister," he said, before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

Ayame grit her teeth and sheathed her sword. She looked at Fugaku and Mikoto, who ran into the room to pick up Itachi in her arms. Fugaku's eyes spun red with his Sharingan and he waited silent and tense for her to explain. Ayame took a deep breath.

"My brother lives," she said flatly. "The Dragon of the Uchiha rises again."


	9. Part Two: The Chunin Exams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello. do you know what really sucks? the freaking annoying inconsistencies in the characters ages and places in the story. ugh. okay. basically, researching the chunin exams again i discovered that although Anko & Hayate are about 3 years younger than the main trio, they also participated in the exams. BUT that would make them 8. but they were 10 when they graduated. so apparently, who the flip knows how this is possible! *internal screaming.* so please forgive me for having some characters with chameleon ages and birthdays, because apparently, who gives a crap in this universe? haha. jeez.
> 
> basically, this is what I've DECIDED IS HAPPENING, through my own research and because I've needed to fix things up so they make SOME kind of sense is this: some people are graduating at a different age, others are born earlier or later. soooo. it's an AU with time-travel soooo. yep. that's my logic. pfff.
> 
> In their teams:
> 
> TEAM MINATO: Obito (12) Kakashi & Rin: (11)  
> TEAM OROCHIMARU: Anko (10), ? Hyuga (12), Other No Name Person (12)  
> TEAM CHOZA: Genma (13), Ebisu (14), Guy, (11)  
> TEAM UNKNOWN SENSEI 1: Ibiki (12), Tokara (13), Hayate Gekko (10)  
> TEAM UNKNOWN SENSEI 2: Raido (13) Asuma & Kurenai (11)
> 
> other characters at this point:
> 
> Minato & Kushina: 22 (and married! yaaayyy!)  
> Ayame: 53  
> Ryuu: …. 53?  
> Tsunade/Jiraiya/Orochimaru: 40  
> Nawaki: 35  
> Hiruzen Sarutobi: 66  
> Danzo: 69  
> Ino-Shika-Cho: 25ish  
> Shisui: 7  
> Itachi: 2  
> Sakiko Uchiha: 59
> 
> hope this helps set where everything is at a little bit.

 

**PART TWO: THE CHUNIN EXAMS**

**Chapter 8**

Rin was always the first to arrive whenever the team was called together for a meeting; it was a change from the life before she died when Kakashi was such a stickler for the rules, including punctuality. She straightened her pale purple, shuriken patterned short dress, straightened her belt, retied the tie at the front of the dress, tugged down her mesh shorts underneath, and sighed impatiently.

At least the weather was nice, she mused. Minato-sensei had called for their team to meet at a bridge by the edge of the village, the place they had been meeting for the last year and a few months when they were getting ready for missions. Rin looked up to the sky. The last few months had been incredibly busy. Their team was not only being assigned missions of increasing difficulty, but they were also being requested for important guard missions for resupplying the shinobi in conflict and medical units. They were barely in the village for more than two weeks at a time. It was a change from the way things had been before.

She heard footsteps on the bridge and looked over to see Kakashi arriving, head stuck in another book.

"Yo," he greeted her without looking away from the page.

"Hey Kakashi, what are you reading?" Rin asked.

He hummed.

"Jiraiya-sensei's new book," he replied. "' _Tales of an Utterly Gutsy Shinobi._ '"

Rin furrowed her brow.

"That's a mouthful," she said.

He hummed again, and Rin pursed her lips in annoyance. He wasn't in the mood to talk.

"Where's Minato-sensei?" Kakashi asked after a few minutes of comfortable silence.

He leaned back on the railing of the bridge and Rin shrugged.

"I'm not sure." She glanced at her watch. "He's late," she frowned.

Kakashi hummed again, but this time it sounded concerned. Minato-sensei was rarely late.

When Obito arrived before Minato-sensei, she and Kakashi glanced at each other with matching frowns.

"Where's Minato-sensei?" Obito asked, wiping the sweat from his brow.

It was a small action, just raising his arm, but Rin couldn't help but notice how much Obito had grown in the last two years. Kakashi had grown as well, but Obito's growth was more noticeable, mostly because out of the three of them, he'd changed the most from their past lives. He didn't wear the blue jacket and pants he'd worn before, his goggles had been discarded almost immediately upon their arrival to their new life. He dressed more similarly to the majority of his clan these days. His t-shirt was black and high-necked with his clan symbol on the back, with black plants, and wrappings around ankles.

Kakashi was dressed almost the same as he used to be, with a navy t-shirt that had stripes down the sleeves, forearm guards, and his brown belt crossed over his chest and father's chakra saber at him back. Sometimes the ways he embraced their childhood again confused Rin, but then again, he'd always been enigmatic.

"Late," Kakashi answered Obito. "Obviously."

"Huh." Obito scratched the back of his head. "Weird."

"Should we look for him?" Rin asked.

"Nah," Obito replied. "Minato-sensei is too awesome to die in the village…" he trailed off after realising what he said.

Kakashi smacked him on the back, hard enough that Obito stumbled forwards a step.

"Nice, Obito."

Obito shook his head.

"You know what I mean," he murmured.

Rin gave him a smile.

"Well, I guess you're right. He's probably been detained by the Hokage or something important."

"I can always count on you to understand me."

Obito gave her a grateful and relieved look. Rin giggled and Kakashi rolled his eyes. He closed his book and put it in the pouch at his thigh.

"You're such a suck-up," Kakashi droned.

"Shut up, Bakashi," Obito replied.

Rin listened to her teammates bickering with faint amusement. Some things never changed, and it was oddly comforting. Rin glanced up at the sky again, and for the first time noticed the figure of their sensei on top of the wooden structure that stood over the bridge. She smiled at him, her teammates still unaware he had arrived, and he smiled back before giving a shake of his head at the pair of idiots Rin was teamed with. Rin grinned as Minato shocked the two of them by appearing with his hands on their shoulders and pulling them apart. Obito let out a high-pitched yelp, and Kakashi wordlessly looked shocked with his usually apathetic eyes widening comically.

"Stop doing that, Minato-sensei!" Obito whined.

Minato smiled.

"Sorry for being late, the meeting ran longer then I thought it would," he apologised.

"So?" Rin questioned. "What's the mission?"

Minato reached into his back pocket and presented them with three white slips of paper. Rin's eyes widened with recognition.

"The chunin exams!" She breathed.

"So it's time, huh?"

Kakashi's bored tone was in stark contrast to the tense set of his shoulders.

"Ugh, stop worrying so much, Bakashi. If we're going to get anything done, we've gotta become at least chunin first."

"Does this mean you'll adjust our charka restraints?" Kakashi asked Minato-sensei eagerly.

He nodded.

"Of course."

"So how many days until the exam?" Rin asked.

"Four," Minato replied. "So how about we do a little test?"

Obito groaned.

"You're not going make us do the bell test again, are you?"

Minato grinned.

"Why not?"

"Fully powered?" Obito asked hopefully.

"Definitely not," Minato replied immediately. He glanced at them all. "Then…" Minato gave them a sly smile. "Catch me if you can."

He disappeared and Kakashi heaved a sigh. Rin smiled broadly and gripped both of their hands, dragging them along behind her.

"Come on!" She called out enthusiastically.

She looked back and saw Kakashi and Obito exchange a grin. Obito's hand tightened on hers.

"Let's do this!"

* * *

Ayame felt the hard stares of the Senju siblings even more than she saw them. Those two had a way of doing that, the thirteen and eighteen year age gaps between them didn't matter a jot. Ayame always managed to feel like they were older than she was in some way, such was the power of the Senju. Or maybe it was just the insane power of Tsuna and the effect of disappointing Nawaki that did that.

Ayame took a deep breath. She was aware of the consequences of her actions, but there was a reason she had kept the reappearance of her brother a secret, and that Fugaku had agreed to her - rather violent - demand. Or threat, depending on whose side you looked at it from.

"This shouldn't have been kept from the Hokage," Nawaki said, shaking his head. "This is a matter of security for the village."

"The Hokage is at war," Ayame replied. "He can't fight a battle on two fronts and I have full reign in this mission."

"His instruction was to keep him informed!" Nawaki responded passionately. "Aya, if he knew the truth, he wouldn't have allowed this at all."

"And that's the point, isn't it?" Tsunade scoffed. "You don't want interference for your little revenge fantasies."

Ayame narrowed her eyes as Tsunade poured herself two cups of sake.

"Here." Tsunade offered her one. "You're gonna need it."

Ayame took it and threw the drink back.

"It's not a revenge fantasy," she muttered.

"Then what is it?" Nawaki asked.

Ayame shook her head. She wanted to tell them, she wanted to tell them both everything. But Sakura had died before telling Tsunade anything, and so the Senju siblings were in the dark about the truth about her mother, Tsunade's connection to her, and especially about why Ryuu defected. No one knew the truth about his twisted mind, and Ayame was beginning to think she didn't either.

"I didn't come to you to discuss my motivations," Ayame said, avoiding the question. "I came to you because I've been looking for him and I couldn't find him, but - I found this." She pulled a scroll out of her bag and handed it to Tsunade. "I know it has something to do with Ryuu, his symbol is on it."

"It's a bit pretentious, isn't it, calling himself a 'Dragon,'" Tsunade murmured.

"Yeah, well, father wanted a strong name." Ayame shrugged.

"And he gave you a flower-based name?" Tsunade asked with a raised eyebrow.

Ayame rolled her eyes.

"Sakura is a flower-based name as well, and my mother was the strongest shinobi in the world."

Nawaki gave her a tight smile.

"You've definitely lived up to the reputation of flowery names," he said.

Ayame shrugged. She didn't care about her name.

"Anyway. I can't decipher it and I think you'll be able too."

"What makes you say that?" Nawaki asked, taking the scroll from his sister.

Ayame cleared her throat.

"Because I found it in a hidden laboratory," she said, looking at Tsunade. "It was written by Orochimaru."

Tsunade stilled, and Nawaki glanced at his sister.

"Hidden laboratory?" Tsunade asked after a moment. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised. He's always been secretive."

She looked away and her hand tightened around the sake bottle. Ayame clenched her jaw nervously, wondering what Tsunade would say to what Ayame had to tell her next.

"We've been suspicious of him for a long time," Ayame said quietly. "The night Ryuu appeared in the village, Orochimaru was gone: no mission, no signing out, nothing. No one knows where he was that night. He disappeared and then just reappeared the next day."

"So you think Orochimaru is working with Ryuu?" Nawaki asked.

Ayame nodded.

"My brother is brilliant and twisted, and so is Orochimaru. It's a perfect match."

She felt sick, thinking about the possibilities of what a partnership between the snake and the dragon could bring about.

"By 'we,' you mean you and Jiraiya?" Tsunade asked, looking at her sharply.

"Yes," Ayame nodded. "I'm sorry, Tsuna," she added quietly.

Tsunade poured herself another drink.

"Don't be," she said harshly. "If you're right, I'll kill him myself."

Nawaki gave Tsunade a troubled look.

"Keep the scroll safe and secret," Ayame warned them.

Tsunade waved her away.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm not an idiot, Ayame."

Ayame glanced at Nawaki, who nodded at her, but whose eyes informed her that they'd be speaking again about this soon.

Ayame left Tsunade's office feeling weighed down. She wandered the halls of the hospital and stopped in the lobby, in front of the picture of her mother. She studied the face, the smile. She looked happy in the picture. Ayame tried to see herself there somewhere, but wasn't sure she could. Where her Sakura was spring; bright and cheerful, Ayame was winter; darker, colder.

The only thing Ayame could see was the same was the seal on her forehead, and still, Ayame didn't use it in the way Sakura envisioned her daughter too. Tsunade was the one who used it to heal. Ayame wasn't a healer. Sure, she had the skill, she could do it if she wanted to, but that was the difference between Ayame and Sakura. Sakura put others before herself, she knew the value of her own skills and abilities and used them in a way that contributed to the whole, she believed in others. Ayame simply didn't have the same generous heart.

A familiar figure reflected in the glass of the photograph behind Ayame and Ayame smiled.

"You force me to take on another student when I've sworn off teaching, and then you don't even have the decency to visit me or invite me over."

"And how is Rin doing?" Ayame asked, turning around.

"Oh fine, just like you said. She's a determined little thing," Sakiko replied.

Ayame moved forward and embraced her in a tight hug. Sakiko was surprised, but she hugged her back. Ayame scrunched her eyes closed for a moment before she stepped back from the woman who was as close to her as a sister.

"What's wrong?" Sakiko asked her with a frown.

Ayame shook her head and tried to smile.

"Nothing. I'm fine," she replied.

Sakiko rolled her eyes.

"Of course you are. Hugs are completely normal from you."

Ayame only smiled and walked out of the hospital, waving back at Sakiko with a grin when the woman called out again about coming to visit.

* * *

Due to the war, the chunin exams would be taken by only Konoha genin. It meant that the participating field was shallow, but there were no other options. Konoha would not open its gates for any of the nations they were at war with, it was too big a security risk. Still, the exams were not to be taken lightly and the genin of Konoha were competitive.

Kakashi, Obito, and Rin were more than ready for them. They had an unfair advantage over their classmates and fellow shinobi, but none of them felt too bad about it. It was just the way life was now. Rin and Kakashi fetched Obito from his house on the day of the exam, making certain that none of them would be late.

Amazingly, Team Minato  _wasn't_  late, which shocked both their fellow genin and the jonin leaders in the village alike. They were greeted with youthful enthusiasm from Guy. Obito and Kakashi joined the boys; Genma, Asuma, Hayate, Ebisu, Guy, Raido, Tokara, Ibiki, and Anko's teammates, while Rin joined Kurenai and Anko. They all talked and caught up until a jonin, a Yamanaka by the look of him, gathered them at the entrance. The mood became tense and serious. The Yamanaka told them they had to go to the examination hall, and take their seats as far from their teammates as possible. The proctor would explain the rules when they arrived.

With nerves taking over, there was little discussion between them all now. They murmured good luck to each other and took their seats. Team Minato all looked and grinned at each other when they sat in basically the same places as they had last time. Everything seemed to be going as they remembered until something odd happened, something that definitely hadn't happened last time.

The chunin and jonin who would be watching them take the exam came in through the doors at the back of the room and took their places along the wall. As they were setting themselves up, the doors at the front end of the room were suddenly swung open.

Obito fell out of his seat, Kakashi choked on his own spit and Rin stared in disbelief when they saw who entered the room. To everyone else, it was a little girl. Dark hair, a purple kimono, very pretty and cute, smiling like the most innocent person ever.

"Hi!" Even her voice was adorable. "Is this the chunin exams?"

"Ooh, what a cute little girl," Kurenai cooed.

It was Ayame Uchiha.

Kakashi had no idea that she could use the same age-regression jutsu that Tsunade could.

"Are you lost, little girl?" Hayate asked.

She shook her head.

"No, I'm not lost. I'm here for the exams. Is this where I sit?"

She pointed at one of the empty seats in the front row and started walking towards it. The chunin in the room all looked at each other with confusion. Obito got up and sat back on his chair, ignoring the strange looks Asuma was shooting him. When the little girl stopped and turned around, there was a peal of nervous laughter in the room.

"Or, is this where I go?"

Kid-Ayame climbed onto the table at the front of the room, in the most adorable way, jumping and groaning cutely. The genin looked to the jonin, who showed no emotion at all.

"What the hell is she doing?" Obito hissed to Kakashi.

Kakashi just opened his eyes wide and shook his head. He had a bad feeling about this.

"Um, girly, I think you're in the - "

"Oh, shut up already."

Hayate blinked in surprise at her tone. Kid-Ayame rolled her eyes and stood on the front desk looking out over the genin.

"What a sorry bunch of genin brats you all are," she scoffed.

In a puff of smoke, she was her regular size again, shocking the room.

"Listen up brats! I'm the Proctor for this years chunin exams, Ayame Uchiha." She grinned.

The room was quiet and confused, staring at her in bewilderment.

"You don't know me well, but guess what, you're lucky to have me here, deciding if you're good enough to become chunin."

"Why?" Asuma asked, the first f the group to snap back to reality. "Who are you?"

"Weren't you listening, kid? What's your name?"

"Asuma."

Ayame's eyes lit up.

"Oh… Asuma  _Sarutobi._  So you're the Hokage's kid. Ha, you're cuter than your old man, that's for sure."

She winked at Asuma, who flushed red. Kakashi rolled his eyes.

"Well, before those loser Sannin were his students, I was his student. His first student, and look how well I turned out."

Obito scoffed at that.

"Loser…Sannin?" Anko choked.

"Your youthful spirit has lasted through the ages!" Guy declared.

Ayame burst out laughing.

"Something like that."

"But you're… you can't have been his student before the Sannin. You're young," Asuma commented with a frown, clearly confused.

Ayame sighed.

"None of you are paying attention, are you?" She pointed at Kakashi. "Hey, kid genius over here, explain who I am to the class."

Everyone's attention turned to Kakashi, who heaved a large sigh at the irritating nickname she used to describe him. He saw Yamanaka jonin sigh and shake his head.

"This is Ayame Uchiha," Kakashi explained in a bored tone. "Daughter of Madara Uchiha and Sakura Uchiha."

There was a collective gasp, and Ayame pointed her thumb at her seal.

"You all need to work on your observation skills, idiots," she scolded them. "My parents were founders of this village, so you better believe I'm going to judge you all _very_ harshly."

Her eyes glittered with excitement at the prospect of failing them.

"How y-youthful," Guy stammered.

"Terrifying, more like," Genma murmured.

Ayame seemed amused by their reactions to her.

"Right, on to the written exam. I'm only going to say this once, so listen closely. The rules are: no cheating, no talking, and you have until the clock strikes 12 to finish the questions. If you're caught breaking any of the rules, the jonin lining these walls will throw you out and you'll be a genin for the rest of your lives."

She grinned, and although Kakashi knew she was lying, he still felt unsettled by the threat. Everyone, with the exception of his teammates, glanced around nervously.

"Leave the room when you're done, quietly. Results will be posted on the board outside this afternoon. Good luck."

She gave them a cheerful wave and then disappeared in a puff of smoke. The same Yamanaka from before came to the front of the room. He looked as exasperated as Obito felt by Ayame. He announced for them to begin the exam.

* * *

"You left so early, I thought you'd given up," Hayate commented to Obito.

After all the examinees had finished, the genin gathered in the yard outside the Academy to eat and discuss the exams.

"Hey, I'm smarter than I look, you know!" Obito defended himself.

"I'd hope so, you don't look like much," Anko teased him.

Obito scowled and Rin laughed.

"Shut up, Anko," Obito snapped.

Anko poked her tongue out at him and grinned. Kakashi eyed the girl carefully. She'd been with Orochimaru for close to a year now, and he knew they needed to stop him before he put the curse mark on her again. It frustrated him to no end that they couldn't just kill Orochimaru now and be done with it. Who knew what he was already doing behind the scenes. Anko noticed his look and threw an arm around his shoulders, dragging him down a little since she was shorter than him.

"Never expected any less from you, Kakashi," she said. "Finishing that test in ten minutes, ah, I'm envious."

The group began chattering away again, and Kakashi looked down at Anko, who had removed her arm from him. He felt a strange urge to tease her since she had been one of the people in his life before who had treated him the same as always. He'd always thought Anko was admirable, to pick herself up and press forwards after Orochimaru. She was strong. She sensed him looking at her, and knowing that no one else was paying attention, he winked at her, which surprised her and amused him.

"If you ever manage to surpass me, Anko, I'll buy you all the dango in the world," he teased.

Anko, who was slightly flabbergasted by the wink still, flush red.

"I'll hold you to that," she said, accepting the challenge. "I love dango."

"I know," Kakashi replied. He took a sneaky glance at her stomach. "I can tell."

Predictably, she exploded, shocking the rest of the group.

"I AM NOT FAT!"

"I never said you were," Kakashi said, unconcerned with her outburst.

"Um, what happened?" Asuma asked, glancing at Kurenai, who shrugged.

"Kakashi, it's rude to tease like that," Rin sighed.

"You just indirectly implied it!"

Anko hit him on the shoulder, rather hard.

"I just said I could tell you like dango," Kakashi replied lazily, rubbing the place she hit him.

Anko's eyes narrowed and Rin and Kuranei exchanged a glance before they grabbed her by the arms and dragged her away before she could strangle Kakashi. Kakashi watched them go with a little smile on his face.

"What was that?" Asuma asked him, eyebrow raised.

Kakashi shrugged.

"My rival has opened his heart to the most wonderful springtime of youth!" Guy said, clapping him on the shoulder.

"Oh. Wait. No, Guy - you've got the wrong - "

But Kakashi realised his mistake too late, and Obito did nothing to help. He only grinned evilly.

"Ohhhh... I see how it is," Hayate smirked.

"Bakashi… I had no idea."

Obito played the innocent and Kakashi wanted to kill him.

"We shall help you on your endeavours to win back the heart of - "

"NO!" Kakashi slapped a hand over Guy's mouth. "I don't want or need help. I was just teasing her. I don't have feelings for her beyond friendship."

Genma and Hayate exchanged knowing looks. Kakashi, sensing the need to somehow switch the attention, glanced at the other two he knew actually had feelings.

"Why don't you help fan the flames of youth for Asuma? Or Obito?" He said desperately.

Said boys opened their eyes wide in shock. Asuma went bright red.

"But that wouldn't be as fun," Ibiki said quietly. "It's no secret they both have feelings for Kuranei and Rin. It's certainly more amusing to tease you."

Asuma and Obito both spluttered and Kakashi glared at Ibiki. Hayate laughed, patting his teammate on the shoulder.

"Can always count on you to go straight for the throat, Ibiki," he grinned at Kakashi.

Kakashi, knowing he was never going to dig himself out of this one, sighed in defeat, and Obito slung his arms around his shoulder.

"Cheer up, Bakashi," he grinned cheerfully.

"I'm going to kill you," Kakashi muttered.

"She's a little young for you, isn't she?" Obito laughed quietly.

Kakashi elbowed him in the ribs and stalked off, embarrassed and annoyed. He heard the guys laughing as he went. He really put his foot into this time.

* * *

The second exam was held the next day in the Forest of Death. Kakashi and Rin collected Obito in the morning again so he wouldn't be late. The second stage of the chunin exams was a team exam where their teamwork would be assessed. It had everyone except Team Minato a little nervous until Ayame showed up again.

"Welcome to Training Grounds 44, where it's highly likely you'll die during this exam."

She beamed a cheerful smile at them all.

Kakashi saw Hayate shiver and felt the same way. Not about the exam, about the fact that Ayame was seriously unnerving when she wanted to be.

"This place is also known as the Forest of Death. Some of you might know, this forest was created by the First Hokage, Hashirama Senju. You may not know that it was actually the Second, Tobirama, and my father Madara who came up with the idea for it: a forest filled with poisonous plants and monsters. You won't only be fighting each other in there, you'll be surviving everything else."

"Fighting each other?" Tokara questioned.

"That's right. The first four teams who make it to the tower will go through to the next round of the exams."

The participants murmured between themselves and glanced at each other.

"However." Ayame gave them all a stern look. "This is not a race. There is only one simple rule to this exam: you cannot enter within two kilometers of the tower until noon on the third day. If you do, you and your team will be forfeited."

"So we have to be in the forest for three days?" Kurenai asked eyeing the forest with some trepidation.

"Can we get some supplies?"

Ayame burst out laughing at the question, but it wasn't mirthful, it was cold and cruel, and it made the genin flinch.

"Supplies? Just for asking that question I should send you back to the academy. Listen up, idiots: you survive or you die. If you can't do that, you should pull out of the exam right now because you are unfit to be a shinobi. This isn't a competition between classmates, this is a battle for survival. If you want to win, you have to fight and claw your way to victory. Do whatever it takes. The people beside you aren't your allies anymore, they aren't your classmates. They are your enemy. Remember that."

She glared at them all. Her tone was harsh, but it got the point across.

"See you in three days time. Don't disappoint me."

Again, Ayame disappeared in a puff of smoke, leaving them a little less bewildered than last time and with more of a point to prove. Obito flexed his fingers and looked at Rin and Kakashi with a determined grin.

The Yamanaka jonin took front and center again.

"To begin the exam, one of your team please pull out a number from this box." Another shinobi, a chunin, stepped forward holding a box. "The number you draw will determine which order the teams will enter the Forest. Each team will enter in two-minute intervals."

Rin drew Team Minato's number. 4. The middle team, different from the last time when they entered just on time because Obito was late.

"The exam will be monitored. If you have to withdraw because of injury, death or because you can't handle it, open the scroll - " scrolls were handed out to each team " - to summon someone to escort you out. Do you understand?"

Everyone nodded.

"Right. Then good luck. The first team, enter."

Asuma's team stepped forwards, and the second exam began.

* * *

Inside the tower at the center of the Forest of Death, the Hokage and Minato Namikaze watched the monitors as Kakashi, Rin and Obito ran in to start the exam.

"I'm quite surprised to see your team is on time," Hiruzen said with a small smile. "I have heard some interesting rumours."

Minato managed to look slightly shamed and shook his head.

"I swear they do it on purpose," he murmured, embarrassed. "Even Kushina's threats haven't worked on them."

"It is interesting that Kakashi is as bad an offender as Obito. It seems... out of character."

The comment was innocuous enough, but Minato knew the Hokage well and understood he was probing for information. Ayame had told Minato that the Hokage had been informed to keep a distance from his team, to not give any special treatment to them or look too closely. Of course, the fact that Minato's team had also become widely known as the best new genin team in the village meant that the Hokage had to keep an eye on them.

"He's been like that since I met him," Minato replied evasively.

"Indeed. Either way, I'm quite looking forward to seeing how this plays out."

They both turned to the right, eyes on an empty space a moment before Ayame appeared there.

"You've put on quite the performance, Aya," the Hokage said to her.

Ayame shrugged and took her place beside Minato.

"I try," she said. She glanced up at Minato. "Are you staying here for the whole three days?"

"I'll be back on the third at the latest," Minato replied.

He glanced at his watch, and then longingly at the screens. He wanted to stay and watched the exam, but he needed to go and meet his unit for the mission. Ayame elbowed him, surprising him slightly. He looked at her questioningly.

"Go," she said.

He frowned at her.

"I've got them."

She gave him a determined and knowing look. Minato still couldn't help but feel nervous for his team in general, even though he knew they'd be fine. He nodded.

"Then I leave them in your care. I will return as soon as I can."

Ayame rolled her eyes.

"Jeez. You're like a mother hen. When you and Kushina get busy it's gonna be really funny watching you try not to freak out over your kid."

Minato felt his cheeks heat slightly, and the Hokage chuckled.

"Good luck on your mission," he said.

Minato nodded, gave one last look to check on his team, and disappeared.

* * *

"He really is like a mother hen," Ayame commented with some fondness when Minato was gone.

She liked that about him. From the moment she met Minato she understood he was protective. It was a good quality and she had gradually learned that his protectiveness extended not only over his wife, his team and comrades but over the entire village and nation. His reputation proceeded him, Konoha's Yellow Flash, the future Fourth Hokage. She saw it, what her mother had told her about him. She could see why he'd become the Hokage. And it _would_ happen. Ayame was going to make certain of it. There was no one else better suited to the position, in her very educated opinion.

There were times that Ayame looked at Minato with a pang of sorrow. In him, she saw the embodiment of everything Ryuu had once wanted to be. It made her worried; if Ryuu recognised that those qualities in Minato, it wasn't just Itachi, Kakashi, Rin and Obito that Ayame was going to need to protect.

"The same might be said about you," Hiruzen said, breaking her out of her spiraling thoughts.

Ayame looked at him in shock.

"Excuse me?"

Ayame had been accused of many things in her life: cold-hearted, ruthless, demon, genius, insufferable know-it-all, princess…but she had never had anyone accuse of being  _'motherly.'_

The Hokage looked amused by her reaction.

"Perhaps not in the traditional sense," he amended. "But when you care for someone, you can't hide it. You tease and poke at them, but you would fall on a sword without a moment's hesitation to protect them. I am glad Minato has someone like you looking out for him, and for his team."

There was a moments silence while Ayame tried to find something to reply to him. She opened her mouth and closed it again, her brows furrowed. The Hokage chuckled.

"Do not let it worry you, Aya. I won't tell anyone your secret."

"Ugh. Just leave me alone," she mumbled.

She turned her attention to the monitors. The teams were mostly meeting with each other and discussing what they'd need to do. All except Team Minato, who were still moving deeper into the forest.

"Please keep me informed with a report at the end of today and tomorrow," the Hokage told her.

"You got it," Ayame replied.

He departed, leaving her alone in the room and she took a seat and made herself comfortable. She was very interested to see how many teams would try and take down Team Minato, the favourites for promotion, before the end of tomorrow.

* * *

Kakashi was intimately familiar with the Forest of Death. Really, he was beginning to think it too was unfair for the other teams that they were participating in the exams. He lead Obito and Rin into a deep and dark part of the Forest, where he knew they would be able to hide and find food and shelter. Rin was not pleased with the plan.

"I am not sleeping in a giant snake pit," she hissed to Kakashi.

"Then keep watch," Kakashi shrugged. "I'm not interested in fighting the other teams. It's not like we have to anyway."

"They'll try and target us," Obito said.

"I know.. but a snake pit?" Rin cringed.

"At the very worst, Anko might find us, and they don't pass the exams this time around anyway," Kakashi said. "If you want to spend the next forty-eight hours fighting and running, be my guest."

"You don't have to be so snappy, Kakashi," Rin replied. "I get it."

"I'll go lay false trails," Obito said.

Kakashi nodded.

"So will we."

"Meet you there when you're done," Obito said.

He disappeared and Kakashi and Rin took to the trees.

"Do you think hiding for two days is going to help us get promoted?" Rin asked him after they'd laid the first trail.

Kakashi spared her a glance.

"Yes."

When she looked at him wanting a further explanation, he sighed.

"It's not about hiding. It's  _how_  we hide, the strategy we employ. Our only objective is to get to the tower first. Engaging in combat is a consequence not an imperative."

Rin sighed.

"I just don't like snakes."

Kakashi chuckled.

"Come on, let's finish this up and get some rest."

Three hours later, Obito had put a giant snake under a genjutsu and it had become their unwitting guard. They settled into the snake pit comfortably. They had laid traps and trails all over the forest. Their location wasn't going to be easy to pin down and they had an easy supply of food and water.

"And now we wait," Rin sighed.

"And now we wait."

* * *

Ayame was dying of boredom. 

Team Minato was the biggest disappointment in the world. The brats had practically become invisible to the rest of the teams because of their superior knowledge base. Their trails were impeccable. Their traps were incredibly misleading. There was only an hour until the deadline, and they had yet to leave their precious snake pit, whilst the other teams were busy trying to kill each other to secure their places.

Minato suddenly appeared in the room behind her and Ayame turned around to him accusingly.

"I bet this is your influence."

She pointed her finger at him, and Minato stared at her, bemused.

"What are you talking about?"

"Those precious kids of yours." She shook her head.

"What have they done?" Minato asked, moving to the monitors in concern.

"Nothing!" Ayame cried out in despair. "That's the point!"

Minato turned to her in confusion.

"What are you talking about?" He repeated.

"You see them." She pointed at the screen they were being displayed on. "They've been there, in that spot, for the last two days. They set up the whole exam so they didn't have to fight anyone and go anywhere, they're just waiting for the deadline."

"That's…quite good, isn't it?" Minato questioned. "Their strategy is within the boundaries of the rules."

"But it's  _boring!_ " Ayame sighed dramatically.

Minato sighed.

"I was hoping to see them beat someone up at least," she complained.

"Well." Minato peered at the screen. "It seems like they're going to ride a genjutsu-controlled giant snake to the tower."

Ayame glanced over in interest.

"Orochimaru will be so jealous," she snorted.

"Will I?"

Ayame stilled. She hadn't sensed the snake approaching. She turned and stared blankly at him.

"Nice to see you again, Princess Ayame," he greeted her smoothly.

"Oh. You're here," she replied.

Orochimaru chuckled.

"I never tire of your blatant hostility." He turned his attention to Minato. "Namikaze, nice to see you. I hear you're sensei of the team of the generation."

"And you, Lord Orochimaru," Minato replied pleasantly. "We'll see how they turn out. They've got a long way to go."

"No need to be modest. Hatake is a genius after his father, it's well-known. What is surprising though is that the young Uchiha seems to be just as skilled. I had been under the impression he was somewhat of a… straggler."

"Apparently you don't know everything, Orochimaru. What an inconvenience for you," Ayame drawled.

She glanced at Minato, who was looking back at the screen, seeming a little uncomfortable at their exchange.

"Ah, it seems my team won't be passing to the next rounds," Orochimaru said, with a little annoyance in his voice.

Minato nodded in agreement.

"That's unfortunate. I've heard good things about Anko."

"She is quite talented," Orochimaru said. "Excuse me. I'll be heading down to collect my incapacitated genin with the medics."

Ayame watched him go with narrowed eyes, and Minato watched her.

"I hadn't realised your dislike of him was known," Minato said quietly.

Ayame turned back to the screens. Kakashi, Obito, and Rin were standing atop the head of the snake, making good time towards them.

"Are the other jonin leaders here?" She asked him.

"Yes," he answered.

"And the Hokage?"

"Not yet."

Ayame let out a breath. She turned to Minato, thinking about what Hiruzen had said to her a few days earlier. There was a lot she wanted to say to him, that she didn't know how to say. She gave him a tight smile.

"Thanks. You can go now."

He looked like he wanted to argue, but then he decided against it and left the room quietly, giving her one last look. Alone again, Ayame tapped her fingers on her thigh and clenched her jaw. Orochimaru had left a bad taste in her mouth, she wished Tsunade and Nawaki would hurry and decipher the damn scroll.

* * *

The snake ride to the tower was exhilarating after two days of dead boring nothingness.

Obito wondered if perhaps they'd set their trails and traps too well. Would genin be able to do what they did? It was hard to judge those kinds of things anymore. Either way, their strategy had worked flawlessly. None of the other teams came close to where they were hidden away. He couldn't help but laugh and wave as they sped passed the other teams, who were fighting each other to make it to the tower first.

"Snakes aren't so bad now, are they?" He grinned to Rin.

Rin shook her head and gave a wry smile.

"I guess not."

"We're almost at the tower," Kakashi said.

Five minutes later, they were met with the shocked faces of the jonin leaders for the other teams, an amused and exasperated Minato-sensei, and a frighteningly livid Ayame.

The snake lowered its head, and the three genin jumped off. Obito turned, and unseen by the other jonin, quickly activated his Sharingan to add a final command in the genjutsu. The snake turned and headed back the way it came. The genjutsu would wear off in an hour or so. He deactivated his Sharingan and turned back to his team.

"Was that awesome or what?" He grinned at Minato.

"It was something," Minato replied.

"You three, in the tower now."

Ayame folded her arms over her chest and glared at them.

"Did we do something wrong?" Rin whispered to Minato.

He shook his head.

"No," he sighed. "But you'd better follow her."

With trepidation, they handed over their scroll to the Yamanaka, and then followed Ayame into the tower, with Minato close behind. An elderly medic came over.

"No need, Sakiko. These brats don't need attention."

Rin bowed her head.

"Sakiko-sensei."

Sakiko raised an eyebrow.

"What did they do?" She asked Ayame.

"Nothing," Ayame replied with a derisive snort. "Orochimaru will be returning with his team and your assistants soon. They'll need you. You should prepare the medical bay."

Sakiko nodded.

"As you command, Princess."

Ayame turned to them.

"I have half a mind to fail you three," she said.

They cried out in outrage until Ayame held up a hand to silence them.

"I can't, however," she said through gritted teeth. "If you three don't give me more entertainment in the next round, I'll kick all of your asses back to your own time."

With that, she walked back out. Team Minato all stared at each other in confusion.

"So… she's mad because we didn't fight?" Obito asked, dumbfounded.

Minato gave a tired nod.

"Yeah. When I got here she was so bored she was about to go find you and throw you at another team."

Rin started to giggle behind her hand, and soon, Obito joined her. Kakashi and Minato both smiled. It was kind of funny.

"Congratulations, by the way," Minato said. "You'll be moving on to the next round, and Ayame isn't the only one expecting a good show."

"No pressure, sensei," Kakashi drawled.

Minato ruffled his hair.

"Oh! Sensei, guess what, apparently Kakashi looooveees - "

Minato never did find out what Kakashi apparently loved, because before Obito could finish his sentence, Kakashi had kicked him into the wall.

* * *

The third exam was a month away, to give the other teams time to recover from the injuries and chakra depletion they sustained during the second stage. Team Minato would be joined by Team Choza, the Asuma and Kurenai's team, and Hayate's. Team Orochimaru had failed the exam, along with the other two teams.

There was a lot of discussion around Team Minato's performance in the exams. People were split between whether or not it was a cowardly act to hide, or whether or not it was a good strategy. They didn't pay much attention to the gossip, but it was irritating to them that people thought them cowardly. Kakashi quickly put an end to the rumours of them being cowards when he was confronted by an irritating jonin and quickly incapacitated him. Any genin who could face down and then take out a jonin with such ease couldn't have been a coward, and so the whispers died down.

During that month, Team Minato was sent on a C-rank escort mission that quickly escalated into a B-rank when they were ambushed by a squad of Mist-nin. Minato had been scouting ahead when the attack happened and came back only when he sensed the rise in his student's chakra. He returned to see they had defeated six of the eight Mist-nin who had ambushed them. The surviving two Mist-nin fled when they saw him approach.

When they finished their mission and reported back to the Hokage, the question was raised whether or not the three of them needed to participate in the exams at all and instead be given a field promotion. Minato argued against this and responded that the exams were only a few days away, so what was the harm in having them take them. The Hokage agreed, stating it was a good opportunity to see the others in the exams and how they were progressing in comparison.

Whilst Team Minato continued on their everyday lives of training and missions and waiting for the exams, Ayame waited with impatience for Tsunade and Nawaki to complete the task she'd given them. They were close, Nawaki informed her three days before the third stage of the exams were due to take place. On the morning on the third exam, she woke with a craving for senbon. She strolled through the streets of the Uchiha District towards the shop, ordered her food and collected it with an eager smile. She decided to eat by the small park and was surprised to see Mikoto there.

They greeted each other with friendly smiles, and Mikoto told her that she was there with Itachi. Ayame looked over to where the two-year-old he was playing with another boy who seemed to be about eight. She didn't take much notice of the young boy at first, instead, she stayed chatting with Mikoto about the exams and Obito. But when she looked back, she saw the boy had turned around and was staring at her. Ayame she dropped her food.

"That…that's impossible," she breathed, eyes wide.

"Ayame? What happened?" Mikoto asked, alarmed.

Ayame stood, and took half a step forward. The boy stood and took half a step forward, copying her actions with a coy smile.

"It can't be…"

"Ayame, what is it?" Mikoto demanded.

"That - that's…"

Ayame shook her head and closed her eyes. A genjutsu, it had to be a genjutsu. She made the sign of release, but nothing happened.

"Kai.  _Kai. Kai."_

Ayame stared in disbelief and denial as the boy openly smirked at her.

"Who is that, Ayame?" Mikoto's voice wavered. "Come here, Itachi."

Itachi looked between the boy and his mother. The boy gave him a nod, and Itachi then walked over to his mother. Ayame continued to stare, unmoving, shocked to her core at what she saw. It couldn't be real.

"Who was that boy, Ita?" Mikoto asked.

Itachi's voice was light and childlike, but his words were clear.

"Ryuu."

Mikoto froze and Ayame flinched. Ayame knew that face, she knew that boy, it couldn't have been anyone else. But it wasn't…  _it wasn't possible._

"Mikoto, take him to T&I," Ayame said quietly. "Make sure there's nothing abnormal in his head."

Mikoto gave a slow nod and picked up Itachi, who held out his hand. He was holding a paper.

"What's this, Ita?" Mikoto asked.

"Fo' Aya," Itachi said.

"Open it," Ayame ordered Mikoto.

She kept her eyes on the child, on the boy who looked so much like her brother. Mikoto read it out in a shaking voice.

"' _One will war end and another will begin. The impurities of time will be removed and the slate wiped clean. I will forward to your feeble attempts to stop me, dear sister.'_ "

Ayame ran at the child, who watched her with interest. She wrapped her hand around his neck and he smiled.

"Good-bye, Aya."

Ayame widened her eyes and released him, but her reaction was too slow. The lightning clone shocked her as it dispersed, and she fell to her knees, convulsing until she forced the chakra out of her body. She fell back on her knees and screamed out in anger and frustration and pain.

"Ayame." Mikoto stood behind her. "You have to tell the Hokage."

Ayame took a deep breath in and then out and then she started to laugh.

"Tell them what, exactly?" She asked Mikoto. "That my twin brother suddenly became a child, sent a lightning clone and threatened war?"

"Exactly that!" Mikoto cried out. "Why do you insist on trying to do this alone? This doesn't just affect you. This is the honour of our clan, the safety of our village. Everything your parents built is at risk because you won't accept help!"

Ayame stood and looked up at the sky.

"It's the chunin exams today," she said with a sad smile. "I was really hoping it would be a nice day."

She turned to look at Itachi.

"I'm sorry your son is involved in this," she said quietly.

"Ayame, please, please tell the Hokage," Mikoto pleaded.

"There's one thing I need to confirm first, and then I will," Ayame said to her. She gave Mikoto a tight smile. "I'll tell him everything."


	10. Part Two: The Chunin Exams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -the anko thing last chapter was just a bit of fun. kakashi's not a pervert. he doesn't actually like her like that. he's mentally way older and sees the others as kids, just like obito sees rin as younger and hasn't done anything romance-y around her.

 

**Chapter 9**

The first round of the third stage match-ups flashed on the screen in the training hall.

_Ebisu vs Might Guy_

_Tokara vs Kurenai Yuhi_

_Ibiki Morino vs Obito Uchiha_

_Asuma Sarutobi vs Hayate Gekko_

_Rin Nohara vs Genma Shirunai_

_Kakashi Hatake vs Raido Namiashi_

Rin glanced at her name with some nervousness. Genma wasn't going to be easy to beat, and if she did manage to beat him, she'd be fighting Kakashi in the next round. She grimaced, and Kurenai patted her on the shoulder comfortingly.

The other two-thirds of Team Minato were pleased with the results. Ibiki was an interesting guy to match up against, and Obito couldn't wait to get in his licks against Guy. Kakashi, on the other hand, was glad to be in the last pool, which meant that there was one less fight for him to take part it, although he was a little disappointed he wouldn't get to match up against his eternal rival - unless Obito did something stupid like lose.

Ayame looked at the board although Kakashi was sure she wasn't really seeing it. There was something else going on in her head. She'd been particularly subdued from the moment she'd arrived, and that was strange. It actually unsettled the other participants in the exams, who didn't know how to take it, considering the way she'd acted for the last two stages of the exams.

Minato noticed her change in demeanour as well, but before he could even question what had happened she shook her head at him and refused to talk to him about it. Instead of standing with the genin and their sensei during their matches - like he thought she would, just to play mind games with the genin - she instead sat on a platform across from them all, alongside the Hokage and his assistant, Nawaki Senju.

The exam started with a particularly unexciting match. Ebisu versus Might Guy was over embarrassingly quickly for Ebisu, who was knocked out after a brutal kick landed on his jaw. Kakashi winced and knew that it was going to be painful to get over that injury. Broken jaws were awful. Genma shook his head and muttered about Guy being a beast, and Obito grinned in excitement.

Kurenai won her match after effectively dodging Tokara's water ninjutsu and proceeding to catch him in a genjutsu.

"To be expected from Konoha's future genjutsu mistress," Minato congratulated her.

Kurenai blushed at the praise, and at the fact that it was the 'handsome Minato Namikaze' who was praising her. Rin smiled at her, and Kurenai whispered that she was lucky to have such a cute sensei, which Asuma overheard and pouted about. Rin, on the other hand, just rolled her eyes and giggled, reminding Kurenai that Minato-sensei was very married and adorably in love. Minato pretended not to overhear them, but his cheeks tinged pink all the same.

In his other life, Obito might have lost to Ibiki, who was extraordinarily talented at provoking his opponents. But he had planned their fight and set it up from the first move. Obito attacked and retreated moving in a circle and using a simple earth jutsu to cover up the explosive tags he was setting with each retreat. He only pretended to fall for Ibiki's tricks and taunts, attacking him fiercely with taijutsu and planted the final tag on Ibiki. Ayame called out to the Yamanaka who was seeing over the match to call it for Obito.

None of the genin understood why until Minato explained what Obito had done. The tags were all connected by a seal, and all Obito had to do was activate the one he had planted on Ibiki for Ibiki and the arena to blow up. What else could be expected when Obito's sensei was a fuinjutsu master?

"A little overboard, wasn't it?" Kakashi asked him with a raised eyebrow.

Obito gave a sheepish grin and shrugged.

"Sorry, Ibiki, I wasn't really going to blow you up," he apologised.

"I would expect not," was Ibiki's serious response, his stare hard.

Obito gulped.

"Oh. Now you're in the sadist's bad books," Kakashi whispered to him. "I hope you enjoyed your life so far."

Asuma versus Hayate was a very active fight, beginning with taijutsu and quickly becoming something almost like a melee. Hayate's sword skills were impressive, but Asuma's ability to deflect and block then with his knuckle blades was maybe even more so. In the end, after managing to overwhelm Hayate with a wind-style ninjutsu, and Asuma came out the victor.

Obito cheered loudly for Rin, and Kakashi gave her a nod of encouragement and a quieter 'good luck.' She faced off against Genma and everyone watched with interest how the medic-nin would match up against someone who was regarded as one of the best of the younger shinobi.

It was a fascinating fight, in the end. Rin's impressive improvements in taijutsu had paid off, and she kept toe-to-toe with Genma who resorted to other methods to defeat her. At some point during their taijutsu match, he'd managed to stick a poison senbon in his fist and when one of his punches connected with her forearm, the sedative was in. He just had to wait out the match, until she succumbed to it. But Rin had felt the tiniest prick of the senbon and rushed her chakra at the affected area, keeping the sedative from moving throughout her body. But it took up a lot of her chakra and concentration to keep it, and she knew she was slipping. In a last-ditch effort to win, she attacked him again, but when his knee connected with her stomach, she was done.

Minato, Kakashi, and Obito all glared at Genma when he returned to the balcony, although Minato hid it better than the other two. Genma gave them all shrugs and made sure to stand behind Choza, but definitely was not hiding behind his sensei from Team Minato. Probably.

Kakashi's fight against Raido was over quickly. He had no interest in a drawn-out match unless it was against Guy or Obito, and he wasn't nice enough to play with his opponents like Obito. Raido wasn't a bad shinobi, he'd be excellent in a few years, and against another opponent, he'd have been able to show that. Kakashi earned a disapproving look from Minato-sensei, which he shrugged off. It wasn't his fault Raido was unlucky.

In the second round Might Guy defeated Kurenai, Obito defeated Asuma, and Kakashi beat Genma. No one was particularly surprised that Guy and Kakashi were among the last remaining, but until the exams, the other teams hadn't really believed that Obito was suddenly so impressive. His fight against Asuma had been far more difficult than he'd originally thought, and he used more chakra than he wanted to.

Rin woke from her short sedated nap in time to see Obito and Might Guy face off against one another. She stood beside Minato and Kakashi, who were watching the match intently. Genma murmured an apology to her, and she shook her head telling him it wasn't necessary. They were shinobi after all.

Obito was pleased to note that Might Guy looked at him with the same determination and concentration that he looked at Kakashi with. Guy was one of the few people that, although he was an idiot, did not approach a fight with preconceived notions about his opponent. He showed respect to everyone, no matter their level of skill. His thoughts were proven true when Guy spoke.

"My eternal rival considers you a great opponent, and therefore so do I."

Obito rolled his eyes.

"Kakashi's not that great. He's actually really ugly under that mask of his."

He heard Rin stifle a giggle from above and grinned.

Guy looked aghast.

"My rival is hip and cool! It's impossible for him to be ugly."

Obito heard Kakashi's long-suffering sigh, and then he heard Ayame's irritated voice.

"Just shut up and fight, Obito. You're wasting time."

Obito turned a glare up to her and saw that she wasn't even looking at him anymore. He frowned slightly and then turned back to Guy, who waited for the Yamanaka to signal the start of their match. Obito flexed his fingers, and it started.

Guy came at him with a high kick that Obito waited until the last second to dodge, ducking under his leg and coming up on the outside and aiming a kick of his own to Guy's head. The next few minutes were an intense bout of taijutsu, where they were mostly just testing each other out. Obito was careful to keep his chakra in check and not allow his Sharingan to activate, and only use taijutsu. Guy was incredible, but Obito and Kakashi were the only ones who could match him in their generation.

They backed away, both panting.

"You are truly worthy to be my rivals friend," Guy panted.

Obito didn't reply, instead, he formed familiar hand signs and released a Fireball Jutsu at his opponent, big enough that he had to move quickly to avoid it. Guy's reflexes kicked in and he dodged, coming back at Obito with more ferocity than before, not allowing Obito to make any more hand signs.

One of Guy's attacks hit him hard, and Obito felt his rib crack. He winced in pain. If he was going to win, he needed to do it quickly. He'd been allowing Guy to show his skill, that he deserved to be promoted, but Obito needed to be okay to fight Kakashi in the next round, and the lucky bastard didn't have to fight this extra fight to get to the final round. Stupid luck of the draw.

Obito slowly gathered the chakra in his eyes, defending against Guy's attacks, until he saw an opening. Guy punched out at him at the moment Obito's Sharingan activated, and Obito moved his head ever so slightly out of the path of Guy's fist, raised his hand at the same moment and colliding it with Guy's wrist. Guy's arm buckled a little, being pushed up and away. The quickness of the action, the unexpectedness of it, and the shock of seeing Obito's Sharingan made Guy half a second slow in his next move, and by then it was too late. Obito whipped his arm out to grip the back of Guy's neck, holding him for a second, bringing his face close to Obito's, and Guy was caught in a genjutsu.

All that training with Fugaku to master his Sharingan (which he didn't need but pretended to) had also included controlling the amount of chakra he used and a lot of genjutsu. It was no wonder Itachi had been so proficient in the art, his father was also a master. Obito released him with a grimace and stepped back, releasing his Sharingan. The chakra restraints gave him and Kakashi access to more chakra, but it was still a pathetic amount compared to what Obito actually had. He needed to conserve it.

There was a stunned silence in the room before Rin broke it with a loud clap and cheer.

"Yeah, Obito!"

Obito looked up at her, wincing slightly from the ache in his ribs, and saw that she was smiling broadly at him. He grinned back and glanced at the rest of his team; Minato was smiling at him proudly and Kakashi was giving him a look that meant it wouldn't be that easy next round.

He was declared the winner, the genjutsu on Guy was broken, and they congratulated each on a good fight. As soon as Obito arrived back on the dais with the rest of his classmates, he was suddenly surrounded by them all questioning him about his Sharingan. Minato saved him by telling them that he needed to go to the medics before the next round, and Ayame announced there would be a two-hour break.

* * *

Ayame left the arena quickly before the Hokage could ask her any questions, and went straight to Tsunade's office. It was technically against hospital and village law, and certainly considered extremely rude, to use the Body Flicker inside the hospital. It was a safety measure, for starters. However, Ayame wasn't in the mood and since her mother damn well built the hospital, she didn't care to obey its rules in the slightest.

It was helpful that the medic-nin within the hospital walls almost instantly recognised her, which meant they backed the hell away immediately and let her do what she wanted. If there was an uppity youngster around, they were pulled away quickly and told about her. Probably something terrible and frightening, and although she felt a slight prickle of sadness that she was feared, she was also a little proud of it.

The benefit of having a constantly activated Sharingan was that when Ayame was concentrating, she could determine who was where at any given time by their chakra signatures. Her lack of awareness of Orochimaru's presence in the Tower during the second round of the chunin exams was due to her giving her eye a break. Every now and again she needed to deactivate that eye and close it. Not that anyone would know unless they got close enough to her to see through the sweeping of hair she always had over half her face.

Tsunade was in her office, alone, so Ayame didn't bother knocking. The look of outrage on Tsunade's face was enough to break Ayame's face into a smile.

"If you were anyone else, you would be dead," Tsunade hissed at her.

Ayame dodged the pen that flew at her head and embedded itself in the wall. She closed the door behind her.

Tsunade, apparently realising her lack of sarcastic response was not good, straightened and looked at her with narrowed eyes.

"What happened?"

Ayame clenched her jaw and then unclenched it. She felt sick. Actually physically ill.

"How close are you with the scroll?" She asked quietly.

Tsunade's eyes narrowed, and Ayame noticed the purple bruises under her eyes and saw the tiredness in her expression. Tsunade hadn't been sleeping. She reached down and Ayame watched her movements through her Sharingan, as Tsunade unsealed a draw in her desk and removed the scroll.

"Nawaki and I finished it this morning," Tsunade answered, placing the scroll on the desk.

Ayame frowned. He hadn't said anything to her at all.

"And?"

Ayame didn't move to take the scroll.

"They're research notes about cloning, increased rate of gestation and development with annotations made about some kind of body-swap jutsu." Tsunade looked and sounded disgusted. "Nawaki wanted to take this to the Hokage immediately, but I kept it here for you. I was going to call when the chunin exams were done."

Ayame felt her lower lip begin to tremble.

_One war ends and another begins._

"So why don't you tell me what's making you so afraid?" Tsunade asked in a gentler voice that was rarely heard from her. "Because this all but confirms that Orochimaru is working on making some kind of freak clone jutsu, but what does it have to do with your brother?"

_I look forward to your attempts to try and stop me._

Ayame took a deep breath.

"He's already completed it," she replied simply, giving Tsunade a falsely cheerful smile and a small shrug, making her seem like the age she looked.

Tsunade's eyes widened and she stood up suddenly, hands planted firmly on her desk.

"What happened, Ayame?"

"He was here," she whispered. "He was in the village, pretending to be just another Uchiha child. Playing happily with Itachi while Mikoto looked on unawares."

She hated herself for not entirely hating him. That seeing the child-Ryuu had brought back so many feelings she'd pushed away, so many memories she'd been forcing herself to forget.  _He wasn't always bad_ , her mind whispered. She couldn't let herself think those thoughts, she couldn't. Too much was at stake, and sometimes it felt like it was too heavy. Her mothers legacy - not the hospital, or Tsunade, or the revolutions she'd made to medical ninjutsu - her true legacy of shadows and pain, hungover Ayame like a cloud, a constant reminder of protecting the village, protecting the future.

Ayame couldn't stop the trembling that took hold of her body. She was afraid, she was so afraid and so worried and so angry and everything that she'd been hoping was wrong,  _wrong_  and a  _lie_  and couldn't possibly be real or true for the last thirty years had just proven itself to be true that morning. It wasn't fair! It wasn't fair because her mother never failed and her father didn't -

Tsunade Senju was not the kind of woman who showed physical affection to someone if it didn't come in the form of violence and Ayame Uchiha was not the kind of woman who ever showed vulnerability in front of another person.

If someone who knew the two of them had walked into the office to see Tsunade hugging a crying Ayame, they'd think it was some kind of illusion. But to Ayame, Tsunade was the closest thing to a sister she had, and although she had kept the biggest secrets from her, and she was absolutely certain that Tsunade was aware of that. But Tsunade never pressed her, and Ayame showed Tsuna everything else she could.

"He's coming back for Konoha," Ayame whispered to Tsunade. "As soon as the war ends, and whatever experiments Orochimaru does to make him stronger."

She felt Tsunade's rage rise and the woman let her go.

"Then we have to put an end to it now," Tsunade said fiercely.

Ayame wiped her eyes and sniffed. She took a deep breath and collected herself. Within ten seconds, the only evidence remaining that she'd been upset was the slight red tinge around her eye.

"Do not let that scroll out of our sight. Keep Nawaki silent until I give the all-clear. When the chunin exams are completed, I will call for you to meet with Sarutobi-sensei. Understood?"

Tsunade nodded.

"Of course."

"Just… act normal around the snake," Ayame said with displeasure.

Tsunade scoffed derisively, her own conflicted dislike of her ex-teammate shining in her eyes.

"I'll do my best."

Ayame let out a long-suffering sigh.

"I was really hoping today was going to be a good day."

Tsunade snorted, returned to behind her desk and pulled out a bottle of sake, which Ayame swiped from her and drank straight from the bottle.

"Welcome to our life."

* * *

"Hey, brat."

Obito paused in the doorway, recognising the voice. He waved the other genin ahead and stopped to talk to the unusually serious-looking Ayame. She almost always looked semi-serious, but it was with an underlying hint of amusement, or irritation - something other than grave, which is how she looked at that moment.

He frowned, concerned. Not that he would ever admit out loud that he secretly really liked and cared about her. She was so annoying and overbearing and treated him like a kid sometimes and as an adult at others, not to mention her nickname for him was 'international criminal mastermind' which really frustrated him. But he definitely did not like to see her looking the way she had been all day, and he knew that Kakashi and Minato-sensei were slightly concerned as well. It was unsettling.

"What?" Obito scowled. "I have to go fight Kakashi."

"Just stay still," she said with annoyance.

Obito sighed heavily.

"What do you want?"

Ayame raised her hands and they glowed green. Obito's eyes widened slightly as he felt her medical chakra probe his body.

"What are you doing?" He asked her. He'd never seen her heal before.

"Just double-checking," she replied vaguely.

Obito narrowed his eyes and sniffed.

"Have you been drinking?" He asked incredulously.

Ayame's lowered her hands and gave him an irritated glare.

"Just shut up, Obito," she snapped with more force than he'd ever heard from her. "I'm just doing what I can for you, all right?"

Obito had a feeling that she was talking about more than just the medical ninjutsu.

"Thanks, Princess," he mocked jokingly.

Finally, finally, he saw a little smile.

"Keep your heart in the right place, Obito," she said quietly. "Make your clan proud today."

With that, Ayame walked away. Obito watched her go with confusion. Feeling Minato's hand on his shoulder, he looked up at his sensei.

"Something's wrong," he murmured quietly.

Minato nodded, worry etched into his brow.

"I agree."

Obito shook his head.

"Well. First, we've got to finish this, and then we'll figure it out."

Minato-sensei nodded, giving him a quick smile.

"Good luck."

Obito grinned and went inside to fight Kakashi.

* * *

"THAT WAS THE MOST AMAZING DISPLAY OF YOUTHFUL SPIRIT I HAVE EVER BEEN WITNESS TOO!"

Guy's proclamation of the fight - no,  _battle_  - between Obito Uchiha and Kakashi Hatake barely scratched the surface.

The pair had finally allowed themselves to show the truth - as much as they could with their chakra restraints on - of their skill. Only Minato, Rin and Ayame were left unsurprised by how far ahead of everyone else the pair of them were.

"They were holding back on us," Asuma muttered to Genma.

"You think?" Genma snorted.

Rin gave Minato-sensei a secret smile, and he gave her a pleasant one back before ruffling her hair.

"Maybe someone should send a medic down there?" Kurenai said, concerned.

Rin looked down at her two teammates, who were laying on their backs, unconscious. She peered at them.

"They're still breathing," she said. "I think they'll be fine."

Hayate gave her an incredulous look.

"But you're their team medic, aren't you going to help them? Aren't you worried?"

Rin smiled.

"If you thought that fight was the worst they've ever come through, you're very misinformed. They'll be fine and look, the medics have arrived already."

Rin heard a quiet murmur of  _'what kind of training do those monsters do?'_  and couldn't help but smile.

* * *

It wasn't the gathering of the trio that worried Minato. He'd seen Ayame and the Senju siblings together before; they were apparently quite good friends. Ayame's only real and proper friends from what he could tell. So seeing them together wasn't concerning, but seeing the usually calm and thoughtful Nawaki in what he could only describe as a rage, did worry him.

Nawaki Senju's injuries as a chunin were severe enough to land him in a wheelchair for the rest of his life, but Minato admired him even more for it. Not many would be able to do what he had done; to crawl back from the edges of despair (if the rumours were to be believed) and use his wits, intelligence and mind to get as close to his goal of being Hokage as he could.

The traditional seat of Senju on the Hokage Council was supposed to have been taken over by Tsunade, as the eldest. However, likely due to Sakura's influence, there was also a seat on the council required by law to be filled by the head medic. After all, how could the village as a whole be run properly if the health and wellbeing of its citizens were neglected in favour of military might? Tsunade had been filling both roles until Nawaki had been fit enough, and now Nawaki was the one filling both, acting as a go-between for his sister who apparently hating meetings. Not to mention he had become the personal assistant to the Hokage, which meant that Nawaki was just as knowledgable and powerful as the man himself. Minato had heard from Shikaku Nara that Nawaki was just as an adept a strategist with a slightly more idealistic view of the world as the Nara himself. Nawaki Senju was possibly the most powerful man in the village, although Minato highly doubted that he would ever use it for his own advantage. Nawaki was by all account an honourable man who acted with integrity and kindness first.

Minato watched the trio from a distance with a frown. Ayame had been odd since the day of the final exam, and two days of vacantly worried looks on her face was extremely concerning considering the nature of their 'mission' and how that would affect his own time-traveling soon-to-be chunin. He knew from experience that if he approached Ayame with his concerns, she'd brush him off with a joke or something else that was infuriating, evade his questions and then continue on with whatever she was doing. All he could do was wait and wonder.

Suddenly, the door to the Hokage's office burst open and his trio all walked out of there with huge grins on their faces. He walked from his place by the window at the end of the hall to meet them.

"Congratulations," he smiled at them.

"Yeah!" Obito's fist-pumped the air. "We're chunin!"

"I knew you could do it," Minato said, pleased.

Kakashi rolled his eyes.

"Well, all things considered… of course you did."

Obito threw his arm over Rin's shoulder and they both laughed.

"Kushina wanted me to tell you to be at our house by seven tonight," Minato told them. "She's cooking up a special congratulatory meal for you."

Rin's hands came together and her eyes lit up.

"Oh, Kushina's cooking is the best," she said happily. "I'll make sure they're not late, sensei."

"Thank you, Rin."

Minato watched as Kakashi was dragged off by Might Guy, who had also been promoted, and waved to Obito and Rin who followed along with Genma Shirunai, the only other promoted genin of the group. He was proud of them, although not surprised. If they hadn't been made chunin he would have been extremely disappointed in the Hokage and fought for their promotions. Kakashi and Obito were both elite jonin level shinobi technically (but only he knew that), and although Rin was a mid-level chunin a most, she was still a very strong and smart kunoichi with a lot of potential.

"Come in, Minato."

The Hokage's voice drifted into the corridor and Minato walked into his office.

"You have a fine team, Minato," the Hokage said, sucking on his pipe.

Minato inclined his head.

"I do. They're all extremely talented shinobi."

"As you know, it's not common for genin teams to stick together after they're made chunin unless they're exceptions such as Ino-Shika-Cho, since we need to fill our ranks with the best people in each place."

Minato stilled. Was his team going to be split up? He'd only had two years with them, and there was more they had yet to do.

"It is clear, however, that Team Minato is very much a cohesive and effective unit. You will remain the team captain, with the chunin under your command. However, due to the war effort, there will be times when each of them are called away to fill different roles."

"I understand, Lord Hokage," Minato responded, unable to stop the rush of happiness and relief he felt. His team was going to be kept together.

"With that in mind, Rin Nohara will be assigned to the hospital, working directly under Sakiko Uchiha in conjunction with Tsunade's student Shizune. You should meet with her to organise a training schedule that will keep Rin from burning out. Medical ninjutsu training will burn through her chakra reserves and any external missions must have this taken into consideration."

"Thank you, Lord Hokage."

The Hokage inclined his head and Minato was dismissed.

* * *

"It's the necessary time."

The air in the Hokage's office seemed to suspend and the words hung around the Hokage and Ayame. The suddenly tense atmosphere didn't make sense to either of the Senju siblings, but they remained quiet, understanding that it was not their place to speak or question. Something that Tsunade usually had a lot of trouble abiding by, but apparently this was one of the rare situations in which she did not speak.

The Hokage's eyes drifted from Ayame to Tsunade and Nawaki.

"I expect that since you haven't dismissed them, this information is necessary for everyone?" He questioned Ayame.

Ayame took a deep breath and gave a wry smile.

"It's…part of the necessary time," she amended.

The Hokage's eyes narrowed at her.

"Tsuna, the scroll."

Tsunade gave her a calculative look and then handed Orochimaru's scroll over to the Hokage.

"What is it?" Hiruzen asked.

"On the morning of the chunin exams I was walking to get some senbon from that really delicious place in the Uchiha District, and then I saw Mikoto with Itachi at a park. So I went to sit down on and chat with her - "

"Get to the point, Aya," the Hokage snapped.

"There was a boy playing with Itachi. About nine, maybe. He wore Uchiha clothes, I assumed he was an orphan - until I got a look at his face."

Tsunade stepped forwards.

"Nawaki and I have been working to decipher that scroll for a month. It's Orochimaru's."

The Hokage scanned its contents and Ayame saw his face pale.

"Tell me the rest of it," he said, his voice quiet and thoughtful, but wavering with anger.

"It was a lightning clone," Ayame told him, keeping her voice flat and emotionless as if she didn't care at all. "He gave me a message. Ryuu will come for Konoha when the war is done, but before then, something must be done about the snake who has been conspiring with him."

There was a long silence in the room, and Tsunade couldn't contain herself any longer.

"You know he's been off for years," she snarled at the Hokage. "Orochimaru is not a friend to Konoha, everyone knows he's been doing something in the shadows and this is the proof."

"I found that scroll in one of his hidden laboratories on the borders of the country," Ayame said. "I do not doubt for a moment that it was put there for me to find, likely by my brother, who does not and never has cared for Orochimaru. They're working together and using each other for their own means, I'm sure of it."

Lord Third closed his eyes for a moment.

"We are in the middle of a war," he murmured. "And Orochimaru is one of our most significant and important shinobi."

"He's also a traitor," Ayame hissed, her anger getting the better of her.

"What was the message?" The Hokage asked her.

Ayame swallowed her annoyance.

"One war ends and another begins."

The rest of the message was not for the others to know, not yet. According to her mother, Minato would become the Hokage after the war, and it was Minato Namikaze that she trusted more than the Third in this matter. The Third was emotionally compromised when it came to Orochimaru and Danzo. Minato, Ayame hoped, would not be.

"Lord Hokage." Nawaki rolled his chair forwards. "I believe this information in regards to Orochimaru and Ryuu Uchiha must be brought to the council. We are in the midst of a war unlikely to end any time soon."

"No," Ayame was the one who snarled this time. "Danzo Shimura will  _not_  be informed of this."

The Hokage looked at her darkly.

"You have no proof that Danzo is involved in nefarious activities, and your judgment over the man is biased."

Ayame's blood ran cold.

"You think that just because you're old friends that you can keep that man in line? Please, you're a sentimental old fool, Sarutobi - "

There was a reason Hiruzen Sarutobi had been named the Hokage, and it wasn't often these days that people felt the darkness of his presence under his guise of a cheerful, tired and intelligent old man. But this was a man who had survived two wars and was trained under the Second Hokage. Ayame cut-off and glared at him, knowing that if she spoke another word he wouldn't hesitate to send her to Ibiki or Inoichi to extract everything she hadn't told him from her brain. He glowered at her, and she refused to back away or back down from her opinions. The sooner Orochimaru and Danzo were killed off the better for everyone.

"Nawaki, call the council for an emergency meeting now. Keep it quiet," he snapped.

"Yes, Lord Hokage."

Nawaki left the room.

"Tsunade, get out," Hiruzen ordered.

Ayame could feel the anger rolling off Tsuna's body, but she left without a word. The excessive slamming of the door was enough to let them know she was furious.

"Tell me everything, now," he demanded.

"No."

Ayame's response infuriated him.

"You need to focus on the war. My focus is on my brother. He won't do anything until the war is done, and we  _will_  be prepared for it."

"You have no way to make that guarantee. Ryuu is not the same man you knew."

Ayame bared her teeth.

"I know  _exactly_  who my brother is," she growled. "He will not make a move until the war is over."

"Why?"

Ayame grit her teeth.

"That's classified."

Hiruzen's face was thunderous.

"I am your Hokage!"

"My orders overrule yours," Ayame snapped. "You are the Hokage and your village is at war. This is not a situation you should be focusing on right now. Keep your people alive and I will do the same!"

Hiruzen and Ayame stared off at each other, their chakra's had both released to a level that brought ANBU immediately to the room. Hiruzen dismissed them with cold looks and they left immediately. The Hokage took a moment to control himself.

"How certain are you that Orochimaru is working with your brother?" He asked eventually.

"One hundred percent," Ayame responded immediate and flat.

The Hokage suddenly looked every bit the old and tired man he was. She couldn't find any sympathy for him. If one of her students - not that she ever had any - turned into a psychopath (she was still watching Obito carefully, but he seemed fine for now) she'd kill them immediately. She knew what happened when you didn't put down threats: they turned into Ryuu.

There was a knock at the door and the Hokage called out to enter. It was Nawaki. He glanced between the two of them carefully.

"The council has gathered," he told them.

"Very well."

"This is a mistake," Ayame muttered under her breath.

Hiruzen ignored her, and they went to inform the council.

* * *

The party at Minato-sensei's home had been more than enough for Obito. Kushina had cooked a really good meal, Rin had been smiling so much her cheeks hurt, Kakashi had actually spent the entire evening without his mask on - which shocked everyone since he only ever took it off to eat very quickly in front of them, and they were the only one who'd ever seen his face.

He had never expected that his clan head would hold a small gathering for him as well.

Mikoto whispered to him during the course of the bewildering party where he was congratulated and apparently respected by his fellow clansmen, that Fugaku had used the excuse that this party was to help boost morale with so many of their clansmen at the front lines, but secretly, he was proud of Obito. It was nice, Obito decided, to be properly accepted as part of his clan. It definitely made things easier. With his half-truthful, half put-on facade of a cheerful, boisterous boy, he could sneak into people's good graces and help prevent any future unrest. Even though the clan and village were on very good terms, it still helped to have an in. He hadn't completely abandoned all that he'd learned as Madara/Tobi, and manipulation was a basic skill for shinobi.

Despite those shadowed thoughts he kept in the back of his mind, Obito had come to truly care for his clan in a way he never had before, and particularly for Shisui and Itachi. Shisui was similar to the boy Obito had once been; competitive, loyal, a little more animated than most other Uchiha. But there was a darkness in him that came out on the rare occasion; he was a jealous child, but Obito knew Shisui would come out of it a better person and shinobi.

He'd never tell it to anyone, but Obito had always liked Itachi. Even as he manipulated and tried to kill him in another life. Itachi was someone worthy of respect and admiration. He could only hope that by being around the boy, Itachi would help Obito become a better person, and in turn, Obito could help Itachi - and keep him away from people like Danzo. There were a lot of things to think about, but now that Obito was a chunin, and the war was still at least two years away from ending, he had other things to think about. Including whatever was bothering Ayame, which was probably nothing good.

* * *

"YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS YOU OLD, MORONIC - "

"SIT **DOWN,** TSUNADE," The Hokage thundered.

Tsunade did not sit, but she did not speak either. Ayame's fists were clenched and even Nawaki looked outraged by the suggestion.

"We cannot afford to lose Orochimaru's strength in this war. He is a Sannin. His arrest would weaken us, and make us look weak," Danzo said in a calm voice.

Oh, Ayame wanted nothing more than to decapitate the man.

"Danzo is right," Koharu said.

"Of course you agree with him," Ayame snorted. "You fucking spineless old hag."

"Ayame!" Nawaki looked at her with distress and indignation.

"Call me all the names you like, Princess, it doesn't change the fact that you and your mother failed to destroy your brother even after he mur - "

"Another word and I'll kill you," Ayame hissed, kunai pointing at the old woman's throat.

Koharu sat back, but there was a morbid, smug satisfaction in her eyes, mirrored in Danzo's own expression.

"Put your kunai away, Ayame," the Hokage ordered.

"This bickering is pointless," Nawaki said, ever the peace-maker. "We are at war. In times of peace, the course of action is clear, now it is clouded by need over ethics. Konoha needs Orochimaru right now. When the war is ended, we can take the appropriate course of action then."

"Indeed," Danzo agreed with Nawaki. "However, we must do something to ensure that we keep him from easily being able to contact the Dragon."

Ayame glowered at Danzo.

"We will recall Jiraiya," the Hokage offered. "And have Orochimaru accompany him for intelligence gathering and sabotage."

Ayame loathed to admit that it was probably the best idea, but she wanted the snake's head on a platter so she could burn it to a crisp and feed it to his own summons.

"Jiraiya should be able to keep him from getting into too much trouble," Homura nodded. "But I can't help but be concerned that he will find ways to contact Ryuu Uchiha by methods Jiraiya will not be able to discern."

"Of course he will," Tsunade scoffed, sitting back down.

"At least he will be out of the village. It may deter the Dragon from another infiltration attempt."

"He's not infiltrating for any other purpose than to play and torment until the day he really will come," Ayame drawled. "Which will be  _after_  the end of the war."

"We should send out a team to find him," Koharu said. "Put him down before then, if he truly is a child again as you claim."

Ayame snorted.

"If you think you can take him down, even if he is a child again, you're severely underestimating my brother's skills and overestimating the shinobi we have available for that kind of mission. Besides, I spent thirty years looking for him. He's not going to be found, it's a waste of resources."

"I'm inclined to agree," Danzo said.

Ayame narrowed her eyes at him.

"However, with Orochimaru's departure from the village, might I suggest that you allow me to investigate him?"

Ayame's eyes narrowed further. If that wasn't implied fear that his own association with Orochimaru might be discovered, what was? The Hokage nodded, much to Ayame's displeasure.

"I trust your discretion in this matter, Danzo," he said.

Ayame had never been more disappointed in the Hokage, and Danzo the fake,  _simpering,_   _treasonous bastard,_  smiled.

"This matter is to be handled with the utmost discretion, not to be spoken about outside of this room. There is a war going on and we cannot have murmurs and whispers within our ranks, bringing down morale." The Hokage spoke authoritatively. "Ayame will continue to do her work, tracking down everything she can about her brother. Danzo will investigate Orochimaru, and we will inform Jiraiya only to keep an eye on him. No specific details whatsoever."

The meeting was closed and Ayame sat for several moments in the room, as the other council members left. She sat in the quiet, hating everything that had just happened. It was lucky she remained longer in the room, gathering her thoughts because if she had left earlier she would not have heard the tail-end of Danzo and Koharu's conversation and her Sharingan would not have picked up the passing mentions of Amegakure, the Akatsuki, and Hanzo.


	11. Part Two: The Chunin Exams

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, and welcome to the end of Part Two.
> 
> Coming up next is... PART THREE: KANNABI BRIDGE
> 
> I have a lot of feelings about this chapter. just FYI, Ayame is fairly well informed about what happened in sakura's life.
> 
> I think you will too.
> 
> I guarantee those feelings won't be good.
> 
> Enjoy!

 

**Chapter Ten**

Since the beginning, Konohagakure has been a breeding ground for notable shinobi, beginning with the founders of the village.

Hashirama Senju, the God of Shinobi. His brother, Tobirama, known as much for his mind as his skill. Madara Uchiha, the only equal to Hashirama. Izuna Uchiha, who they said was Tobirama's greatest rival. Sakura Uchiha, Konoha's Iron Fist, the Slug Sage, and the greatest medic who ever lived until Tsunade, who admits that Sakura was far more skilled than she is. But those five were not alone in their greatness. Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, also referred to as Professor, also known as a God of Shinobi. Then came The Legendary Sannin: Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Orochimaru, as well as Sakumo Hatake, the White Fang, who equaled the Sannin. There have been many other shinobi that have made their names known, appearing in the bingo books in various nations for acts during times of peace and war.

The first rumours of the Purple Ghost of Konoha came in the years before the Second Shinobi War, but back then, the colour wasn't included in the moniker, it was just 'the Ghost.' An assassin, an infiltrator who was almost impossible to detect, whose success rate was higher than any other, and oftentimes it was hard to determine if the Ghost had been the one to carry out the mission at all. No one knew the kill-count of the Ghost or who it was at all. The Ghost became the 'the Purple Ghost' during the Second Shinobi War, and her identity was finally discovered. Fear had already followed the Ghost, not knowing who it was caused even more fear. But the name attached to the Ghost did not make that fear abate: it exacerbated it.

Ayame Uchiha. Daughter of Madara Uchiha, of Sakura Uchiha. Student of Tobirama Senju, student of Hiruzen Sarutobi. Sister of the Uchiha Dragon, the criminal, murderer, and infamous missing-nin.

During the Second Shinobi War, Ayame Uchiha and Sakumo Hatake became the two most hated shinobi in Sunagakure. It was an incident in Suna that made her identity known, the closest she had ever come to dying in an encounter with the Third Kazekage - a man who she sometimes wished she'd met under better circumstances.

Ayame didn't particularly care that she became known - her family was already infamous for what had happened with her brother - but she did despise her moniker. The Purple Ghost was a name that her elder brother Izara had given her when she was a child. It started out as a teasing, affectionate name. Ayame loved the colour purple, maybe more than the Yamanaka. She hated that the Uchiha were always in grey, or black, or navy, or other dark and depressing colours. Sure, some of them wore purple, but not that many.

Izara used to say Ayame was the sneaky one of the three of them. Ryuu was quiet, but he wasn't sneaky like she was. Not that she knew it at the time, but since she was little she'd been able to hide her chakra so effectively that even her father, who was almost as good a sensor as Tobirama, couldn't detect her presence without concentrating. From her mid-teens, Ayame had been one of the best and most elusive and unknown assassins Konoha had ever produced. Someone in ANBU had innocently overheard a conversation between her and her friend, talking about Izara and his old nickname had been brought up. They'd thought it was funny to use it as an identifier.

Once again, something she had once loved had been twisted and turned into something she hated. She couldn't escape it, however. Names stuck in the shinobi world. So she endured it, feeling the knife twist deeper and deeper into her heart every time someone other than Izara said that name to her, every time she soiled his gentle and loving memory with another kill, with more blood.

Her mother had come from a Konoha that Ayame never knew. From the stories Sakura told her, she had grown up in peace times, and become a shinobi through war. Ayame had grown up in war and had been sharpened as a weapon her whole life. She admired her mother's convictions and the vision of Konoha she had lived in, but Ayame didn't share in them as much as she wished she could. She hadn't been blessed with friends like her mother apparently had been as a child.

Still, the Purple Ghost had become a significant part of her, and of the village, she loved and served. The persona had bloodied hands and a bloodied reputation, it gave her nightmares and fits of self-loathing, but it got the job done. The fact that most of her records were only accessible to those with the highest level of security clearance made her life a little easier. The newer generations didn't really know what she'd done. Spending so much time out of the village also helped dampen her reputation, and only the older generation of shinobi knew the truth about her.

The Purple Ghost was an avenger, and every kill it took was  _him._

For now, Ayame Uchiha had a new target, a new threat to take care of. She wasn't going to let Minato take his place as Hokage without cleaning out the rotten roots tarnishing Konoha, and setting up a world where some wrongs might become rights. After all, why should the damn brats have all the fun?

* * *

Ayame had gotten used to being inside the Hokage's office; it didn't feel like a chamber of torture to her anymore, but she still felt uneasy, and every now and again when she wasn't focused her mind liked to remind her why she hadn't stepped foot inside of it for thirty years.

Today was one of those days, where in her peripherals she could see the blood that wasn't really there, and smell it and feel it and see those eyes -

"I'll be out of contact for a few days," Ayame told the Hokage, breaking her train of thought.

He gazed at her thoughtfully.

"Is there something I should know?"

Ayame gave a wry smile.

"I'll let you know when I get back if there is. For now…it's more of an... investigation."

She knew that he knew she was lying, but this way he had deniability and never let it be said that the Hokage didn't like deniability when he could get it. Besides, Ayame was in no mood to appease the man with more information.

"Ayame, you are not to inform anyone of the events that occurred yesterday," he said after a moment. "No one. Not a jonin, not a Sannin, not any chunin."

Ayame narrowed her eyes.

"Is that an order?"

"Yes," the Hokage said firmly. "As you said, we are fighting a war. Konoha's elite cannot be concerned with matters not directly related to the current threat, distracting them will only cause more harm at this stage."

Ayame grit her teeth. The Hokage was ordering her to keep Team Minato out of the loop of what was happening with Orochimaru and Ryuu. For now, she supposed, she could abide by that order. But not forever. They were already suspicious something was happening, the observant little brats.

"Well, I guess orders are orders," she drawled with irritation. "I'll be back when I am back."

"Be safe."

Ayame looked back over her shoulder at him and gave the Hokage a look of mock affront.

"Really now, you'd think the call me a Ghost for nothing."

The raised eyebrow he gave her indicated only that he now understood what she would be doing when she was gone.

* * *

Ayame had a game she liked to play with Minato. She didn't think he liked it much, but she didn't really care what he thought. He was a sensor, and she was very good at hiding from sensors, so why shouldn't she test him out to see his mettle? After all, Jiraiya always went on and on and on about his precious little student and how amazing he was. Well, she didn't disagree with him, but it was still amusing to scare him by sneaking up on him and constantly catching him unawares. It was even funnier when she managed to land a kiss on his cheek and have him spluttering in shock and embarrassment, blushing adorably, and then have Obito and Kakashi make fun of him.

"You - stop -  _stop doing that_!" Minato cleared his throat, glaring so cutely at her.

Ayame grinned.

"You know, we may have to reconsider your standing as the best shinobi in the village, Minato."

Minato's face reddened and he shook his head, exasperated in her. She just grinned wider.

"How do you keep doing that?" He muttered. "I've never come across another shinobi who can suppress their presence like that."

"Ah, well, then you never met the Second Tsuchikage," Ayame shrugged. "He had no chakra signature at all. I'm just, you know, super talented."

Obito scoffed.

"Well, anyway! I've got to get going soon, just thought I'd let you know."

"Where are you going?" Kakashi questioned her.

"Amegakure."

"Why?" Minato asked. "We don't have any presence in Ame right now."

"You're not wrong, and yet, you also are," Ayame replied cryptically.

"Ayame," Obito whined. "Why can't you ever just say things straight?"

"I'm a shinobi, Obito," Ayame rolled her eyes.

"Who is going to Ame with you?" Kakashi asked, peering at her.

"No one," Ayame replied. "I'm off to see some old friends."

"That's not the truth," Minato responded, folding his arms over his chest. "Something has you concerned."

Ayame sighed dramatically.

"You should stop paying so much attention to me, I might get the wrong idea."

She fanned herself and laughed at the expressions on the three of their faces. Obito's expression of disgust faded as some other thoughts came into his mind, and he looked at her with a grimace.

"Amegakure is home of the Akatsuki," he said quietly. "Is that why you're going?"

Kakashi looked at his friend in surprise.

"Among other reasons," Ayame replied evasively.

Obito looked at her, then glanced at Minato and Kakashi, and lowered his head. She didn't know exactly what he was thinking, but she was sure it had to do with some terrible thing he did in his other life. In the first few months of her return to Konoha, she'd grilled him on everything to do with the Akatsuki, helping him to fill in all the blanks. Sakura, unfortunately, didn't know that much.

"Why are you going there? What are you going to do?" Kakashi asked, curious and demanding, his eyes unable to hide their inquisitiveness.

Ayame smiled at him.

"You know, when you look at me like that, you really remind me of your father."

Kakashi blanched.

"Excuse me?"

Ayame hummed thoughtfully.

"Is it true they didn't like him in Suna in your time as well?"

Kakashi nodded.

"Well, it's the same now."

"I know," Kakashi frowned. "Everyone knows that. Why are you talking about my father? Did you know him?"

"Are you serious? Of course, I did. My mother died saving his life."

A flash of guilt passed through Kakashi's eyes.

"Well, yes. It wasn't a very nice time for me." Ayame paused. "But don't worry about it, because I got to know your father pretty well and worked with him a lot, and now I get to play with his cute little kid," she teased, reaching down to pat him on the head.

She laughed at his disgruntled expression.

"Well, I'm going now. I'll see you when I get back, although I'm very certain you'll hear about my adventures before I get back," she grinned and then flickered away.

She wondered if they realised she never answered their questions.

* * *

Ayame hated Amegakure. She hated the rain, but she had things to do and people to see. The Akatsuki was one of the few things that Ayame had drilled Obito about. Her mother knew some things about them, but not much. Obito was the one who knew the most. They had been a peaceful organisation who just wanted a free and peaceful and protected Ame. They were idealists, talented, easily manipulated because they believed in the best of people. But, unlike her mother's timeline, there was no Rinnegan, no Zetsu, no Tobi. The year she spent investigating Ame and looking for the three that would lead the eventual group was one of the most frustrating of her life, and one that almost ended in failure.

Sakura had provided her with descriptions of them. It was the redhead she looked for first; Nagato. She found him the day that some idiotic and cowardly shinobi from her own damn village killed his parents and attempted to kill him too, just to cover up their misdeeds. They almost succeeded, but Ayame was faster. She knocked the two out, holding back on just executing them immediately, and used her medic-nin ability to heal the heavily wounded child.

Ayame looked into his eyes and was relieved that they were not purple rings. It was odd, needing that confirmation that the father she had was not a crazed man here, who had done some despicable things and put his eyes into a child. Instead, the eyes that looked back at her were scared, sad, lonely eyes. She healed him, fed him, apologised on behalf of her village and apologised that she couldn't save his parents or do more to help him. Whatever happened to him next was out of her hands. She'd been beyond pleased to hear from Tsuna that Jiraiya had picked up some orphans in Ame. All her work hadn't been for nothing.

But if Danzo got his way, it would all be undone. Not that he would, Ayame would see to that. Everything was for Konoha? Hah. In his own twisted mind he was doing it for Konoha, but Ayame knew better. She saw through him, just like her uncle Shikata had. Just like her mother. Sakura had tried, of course, to stop Danzo from being who he was in her time. Unfortunately, Ryuu had ruined everything.

To Ayame, Danzo was a coward who he coveted power. On his own, he was relatively skilled and shrewd, but he had a selfishness about him that Tobirama-sensei saw as well. He always he used someone else's power when he could, he hid behind others: his team, Kagami Uchiha who died to save his life, Hiruzen who claimed friendship with but whom he was so envious of, the ROOT agents that were utterly loyal to him who shielded him and died to protect him.

Ayame knew that in some ways she was like him. She manipulated things behind the scenes, she acted on her own behalf to better Konoha. The difference between them was that she would never allow someone else to protect her or send someone else in when she had the skill herself, and he would always use someone else first. Coward.

Using her recollections from Obito's information, she found the hideout for the Akatsuki quite easily, and to her surprise and pleasure, she was discovered skulking around rather quickly. She found herself surrounded by a storm of paper butterflies, which she assumed were razor-sharp and was fascinated with the jutsu. It was impressive, considering she was standing in the rain and yet the paper didn't appear affected at all.

"Who are you?"

She turned to see the small group of shinobi in long charcoal coats. All of them were young, all of them were armed and clearly skilled. She spied Konan, the originator of the paper jutsu she was trapped in, but she didn't see Yahiko or Nagato. She smiled brightly, acting vapid, and waved cheerily at her, while carefully assessing the shinobi who surrounded her.

"Hey. I'm looking for Nagato!"

Konan, who was clearly the leader, stepped forward.

"Shinobi, who are you?" She repeated, not fooled by Ayame's act for a moment.

"Well, if Nagato remembers me, then he can tell you, and if he does, then I'll tell you more. Deal?"

She wasn't about to give away her identity just yet. They might be young, but these people had grown up in a war-torn country, and Ayame had done enough during the last war to earn some conflicting reputations in the country as both herself and the Purple Ghost. Konan hesitated, obviously unsure if she was telling the truth about Nagato knowing her, and Ayame ducked her head and pointed to her headband.

"Konoha," she said. "And I think, Konan, you might recognise this."

Konan was startled to hear her name, and then even more startled to see the diamond on Ayame's forehead. Her violet eyes narrowed.

"Who are you?" She asked again, not defensive this time, but curious.

"A friend of Jiraiya's," Ayame replied pleasantly. "I would've asked him to come along, but he's a little tied up at the moment, and time is of the essence. Also, I'm cold and wet, so can I come inside now?"

Slowly, Konan nodded and the butterflies disappeared, reattaching to her body in a way that made Ayame a little jealous of her. Konan's jutsu was beautiful. Ayame's smile brightened.

"You really are as beautiful as Jiraiya bragged. Honestly, the man is incorrigible, but he's far from a liar."

Konan looked a little unsure at how to take the compliment.

"He didn't say it in a perverted way," Ayame laughed, realising where Konan's thoughts and knowledge of Jiraiya had taken her. "More of a… proud father, I suppose."

"Thank you," Konan murmured, a small flash of something like nostalgia passed through her eyes.

It was all nice, but Ayame was still standing in the rain and getting more soaked by the second. Konan glanced at Ayame's forehead.

"Are you a medic?"

"Among other things, when I need to be."

There was a low murmuring and Ayame narrowed her eyes, noticing for the first time that there seemed to be a distinct lack of Nagato and Yahiko, some injuries on the others, and worry in all their faces.

"What happened to Nagato?" Ayame asked.

Panic hit her, and she wondered if she'd come too late. Konan studied her a moment, and sensing Ayame's worry was likely genuine, she replied in a quiet voice.

"There was a fight, he was injured, as was our leader."

Ayame stepped in from the rain, closing in on the shinobi, who all became more tense and alert to her. She dropped her cheery facade, opting instead for a more genuine approach.

"Where are they?"

She saw the hesitation and uncertainty in the eyes of their comrades, and she understood it - she was a stranger to them - but she snapped anyway.

"I am not your enemy. I have come to warn you about somethings, but first I'll heal your damn leaders. Take me to Nagato and Yahiko," she demanded, glowering at them all.

"Very well," Konan replied.

There was mistrust in her eyes, but her face was tight with worry.

"Follow me."

Ayame really couldn't understand why anyone would want to live in a nation of constant rain and cold, metallic buildings. She was only grateful that the room in which Yahiko and Nagato were resting was warmed by a fire and away from the elements. She was a good medic, but she was not at Tsunade's standard. Nagato and Yahiko had both been wounded quite badly, and their own medics had done the best they could. Both of them were wrapped in bandages and unconscious. After a quick discussion with the tired Akatsuki medics, she gave both of them a quick examination and then tended to Yahiko's wounds first. Konan hovered nervously over her, watching her work carefully.

"You know," Ayame started. "Medical ninjutsu is not my strongest skill. I'll do what I can, but I'm nowhere near the caliber of medic Tsunade is."

She didn't want to make any promises. Just in case. Konan did not respond for some time, and Ayame concentrated hard enough on healing that she didn't notice Konan again until she went to tend to Nagato briefly. Yahiko had internal injuries that were proving a little difficult to heal. Not for the first time did Ayame wish she had listened more to her mother's teachings.

"Do you truly know Master Jiraiya?" Konan asked her.

Ayame glanced up for a moment, seeing a flicker of hope on the girls face.

"Unfortunately," Ayame murmured in reply.

She moved her hands from Yahiko's chest and organs, where she'd healed as much as she could, towards his head.

"I've been traveling on and off with him the last ten or so years. He told me a lot about you three."

Ayame felt some of the swelling subside in Yahiko's skull and let out a little sigh of fatigue. She was using too much chakra.

"He should be okay, but he'll need a few days rest," she said with a frown. "I've managed to repair most of the damage, but the rest will need to heal naturally."

Konan's relief was palpable, and she moved to take Yahiko's hand in her own as Ayame watched the interaction with interest and moved to tend to Nagato. She was amazed at how massive his chakra reserves were. Her own were large, but Nagato's were _huge._ Glancing at his red hair, and faintly recalling it was the same shade as his dead mothers had been, she felt like her suspicions about him being an Uzumaki were confirmed.

"Will you please tell me who you are?" Konan asked.

Ayame hesitated and then nodded.

"My name is Ayame Uchiha," she replied.

It took a moment for Konan to put her name to her reputation. After all, it would be surprising if the Akatsuki didn't have access to at least an older Bingo Book. Although her response was not what Konan was expecting.

"Then you do know Nagato," she said.

Ayame blinked. Konan gave her a weary half-smile.

"When we first met Nagato, he told us about what happened to his family, and then about his saviour. It was confusing, at first, since he said all three of the shinobi from that night were from Konoha."

Ayame's eyes darkened as she recalled them.

"He mentioned it to Master Jiraiya one day, and after questioning him thoroughly, he told Nagato it was likely 'Ayame Uchiha' who'd rescued him," Konan said. "He saw your picture in a Bingo Book a year or so ago and confirmed it."

Ayame was quiet, thinking about how she would approach the more delicate topic of her plans for the next few days.

"You should change his bandages," she said absently to Konan. "Disinfect and clean the wounds while you're at it."

The two women worked quietly together, neither one speaking. Ayame's chakra was getting low and she stopped her treatment, now that the two of them were out of danger, and leaned back against the wall tiredly.

"Come with me, Ayame Uchiha," Konan said to her. "I'll show you to a room you can rest, and have food and dry clothes brought to you."

"Well, finally some hospitality around here," Ayame replied dryly.

She chucked at the embarrassed flush of Konan's cheeks.

"Just kidding, Konan."

Konan gave her a rueful smile and led her away.

* * *

Ayame woke from her chakra-drained sleep in a semi-refreshed state. She yawned and stretched, blinking a few times and getting her bearings again. The room she'd been put in was decently warm, but sparse. She sat up slowly, wiping her eyes and glanced at the folded clothes that she suspected Konan had left on the small table beside her bed.

With a frown, she noticed the clothes were fairly boring looking, and replica's of what Konan had been wearing: long charcoal coloured coat-like thing with a waist obi. Ayame shook her head, wondering at the fashion of this accursed place. Without too much reluctance, she dressed and rearmed herself, noting that none of her scrolls or belongings had been tampered with. Which was good, or she would have killed someone. There was a knock at the door.

"Come in," Ayame said, running the brush Konan had so thoughtfully provided her with through her hair.

Konan opened the door, eye-widening slightly when she caught a glimpse of Ayame's usually hidden Sharingan.

"Good morning," she murmured. "I've come to show you where we eat."

"Excellent," Ayame replied, adjusting her headband to its usual position on her head, and then she paused and removed it. Konan noticed her action and raised an eyebrow. "For now, it's better if any outsiders think I'm just a new member of your little group."

She closed her eyes a moment and concentrated, hiding her diamond. Konan seemed like she wanted to ask questions, but she remained quiet on the subject and instead said that after they ate, Yahiko and Nagato wished to meet her. They'd woken. Ayame felt a small flush of relief at hearing they were awake and nodded, following Konan around.

The food was nice enough, but not great. Ayame dealt with the mistrust and scrutiny with cheery smiles that only made them more uncomfortable with her presence. Konan didn't seem to mind so much, and Ayame had to wonder if she was as naive as she seemed or just acting. If she was acting, it was pretty flawless. She would have to make certain that these inexperienced orphans got their wits about them quickly. She could have been lying about knowing Jiraiya, and even if Nagato had recognised her picture and they knew her name, she might have been an imposter or lying about her true intentions for being there.

When she returned to the room Nagato and Yahiko were resting in, she was pleased to see them - although exhausted and still uncomfortable with their injuries - able to sit up and converse easily enough. Nagato's eyes widened in recognition upon seeing her, and Yahiko's narrowed as he studied her appearance. It seemed like Yahiko was the more shrewd of the trio.

"Yahiko, Nagato, this is Ayame Uchiha," Konan introduced her.

Some unseen gesture sent the rest of the Akatsuki out of the room, leaving Ayame alone with the three orphans, and Konan closed the door behind her. Ayame smirked when her Sharingan picked up the little threatening paper jutsu ready to pierce her if she moved in a way that Konan didn't like. Looks like the girl wasn't as naive as she appeared.

"I hear we have your talents to thank for our recovery," Yahiko said.

Ayame inclined her head.

"Well, you know, Jiraiya might try and kill me if I just let you die. Or he'd cry, I don't know what would be worse," she shrugged.

Yahiko couldn't help the twitch of his lips at that.

"You have saved my life twice now," Nagato said in his quiet voice.

Ayame turned her gaze to him.

"Nice to know I'm hard to forget," she grinned. "You've grown up."

Nagato's eyes narrowed.

"You haven't changed at all."

Ayame's grin grew.

"So you still think I'm pretty? I seem to recall some mumblings about how pretty I was."

Nagato's skin blushed scarlet, and Yahiko muffled a laugh at his friend's expense. Even Konan cracked a smile. Ayame released the chakra hiding her seal, allowing it to appear on her forehead once again.

"As nice is it to be remembered, I did come here for a reason," she said seriously. "First, can you tell me how you were injured."

Yahiko clenched his jaw.

"We were ambushed by Iwagakure," he said shortly. "We barely managed to escape before Konan found us."

Ayame hummed in thought, different ideas coming to mind.

"Now what are you here for?" Yahiko asked of her.

It was interesting to see that he had a natural charm and authority to him. The kid was a born leader. A little like Minato. Ayame paused a moment before she answered, wondering how to proceed.

"I'm sure you know that not all of Konoha's shinobi are like Jiraiya or myself," she said cautiously. "Some have… ambitions that do more harm than good."

Yahiko frowned.

"And you, my young friends, have made a name for yourself, reaching all the way to my home."

Yahiko and Nagato exchanged a glance.

"What are you trying to say?" Yahiko asked, folding his arms over his chest. "We have no quarrel with Konoha, we're simply trying to protect our people."

Ayame held her hands in the air in defence.

"I'm not implying otherwise."

She sighed, realising these were the same kinds of people as Minato. It was better to speak plainly and honestly about serious matters with them. How the heck Jiraiya kept managing to find these idealistic like-minded people was beyond her.

"The enemy you know is better than the enemy you don't. Your group is an unknown, and there is a certain.. " she paused, thinking of the right term, "treacherous bastard - " she settled on the more apt description, which obviously had surprised the three of them, " - who would rather see you all dead than risk you growing in strength and becoming a threat."

There was a tense silence in the room.

"I am here," Ayame said in a softer voice, "to make sure his plans do not come to fruition. But let me make this clear, I am _not_ here on behalf of Konoha. The Hokage does not know I am here, and when all is said and done,  _you will not speak of my presence here either_."

"What is it you want?" Konan asked. "You don't owe us anything, you are not a citizen of our land."

"I don't want anything from you, except that you continue the work you've been doing. You share the same ideas for the future as my mother did, as Jiraiya, and as someone else I know. If you want to repay me for saving your lives, then stay alive and don't forget what you're fighting for. If you don't," Ayame shrugged, "I'm not against killing you all to protect the future."

There was a heavy silence in the room.

"I think you should tell us what we need to prepare for," Nagato said slowly.

Yahiko's frown deepened.

"You've saved my life twice, and it sounds as if you intend to save it a third time. I believe you when you say you'd end our lives if we strayed from the path Jiraiya led us on, but we will not do so."

Ayame studied them all carefully.

"Have any of you heard of Danzo Shimura?" She asked.

They had not.

"Not surprising," Ayame muttered with annoyance. "He is not a man to be trifled with, and although his motives are apparently for the Leaf, he is not a man to be trusted. He holds a lot of power and has highly skilled and brainwashed shinobi at his command."

"This is the…treacherous bastard you spoke of?" Yahiko asked.

Ayame nodded.

"He has come, or will come, and somehow will convince Hanzo that you're a threat to him, and then set up your deaths."

"But Hanzo is fighting for the freedom of Amegakure, as are we," Nagato said. "We have no quarrel with Hanzo."

"We aim only for his acceptance," Yahiko said.

Ayame pursed her lips.

"Be that as it may, it doesn't change the fact that you are all slowly gaining followers and power, and Danzo will convince him that your aim is to take Amegkaure out from under him."

Yahiko paled.

Ayame frowned.

"Were there many dead from your battle with Iwa?"

"There were casualties," Yahiko answered evenly. "Why?"

Ayame pursed her lips again, remembering what Obito had told her about what he'd seen between Hanzo and Danzo in the past.

"If Danzo is here, that's how he'll convince Hanzo you're a threat. He'll take the bodies to Hanzo and show him what you're capable of. I except you'll receive a missive of sorts from Hanzo in the coming days, inviting you to meet with him, Yahiko."

"Why Yahiko?" Konan asked.

"The easiest way to crumble an organisation is to cut off the head," Ayame replied.

Konan looked at Yahiko anxiously, and Yahiko's eyes hardened.

"I'm planning to hang around for two days, and if the message doesn't come by then I'll go out and investigate myself," Ayame informed them.

"I'll come with you," Konan said.

Ayame raised an eyebrow.

"I don't think so."

"If you are here to protect us, then we can't just sit back an do nothing," Yahiko argued.

Ayame gave him a hard look.

"I don't need help. This is not something you will be involved in any more than you already are, this is a problem in my village and I will handle it on my own."

"But - "

"No," Ayame interrupted him sternly, giving all three of them a sharp glare. "Because do not doubt that if Danzo's minions are around and they can get their hands of any of you two, he will take you and use you as a tool to have Yahiko surrender himself."

Nagato and Konan both looked like they wanted to protest, but didn't, seeing the sense of her words. Ayame held out her hand to Yahiko and smiled, genuinely. He took her hand warily and shook it.

"So. It's nice to finally meet you properly. I've heard a lot from Jiraiya. Do you still have the frog costumes?"

Ayame chucked as all three of their faces turned a bright red.

* * *

Ayame was surprised at how quickly she came to like the orphans. They were adorable, actually. Nagato was shy, Yahiko charismatic and cheerful, and Konan reserved but loyal. It was obvious that Nagato treasured the two of them above anyone else, and equally obvious that Konan and Yahiko were in love with each other and trying to keep the other from finding out. Much to her chagrin, apparently in their days with Jiraiya, he'd actually told them about her and her 'twisted' personality, according to Yahiko. It made it hard to unnerve them when they were expecting it from her. Ayame tried not to pout, but she did miss how reactive Kakashi, Rin, Minato, and Obito were to her.

The rain brought back her nightmares, however, and Ayame woke several times the second night she was there, and once she almost killed Nagato by accident, who had sensed her distress and come to investigate. The third night, the messenger came.

Ayame henged her appearance into a girl resembling Konan, enough to be her sister. Konan was startled at her appearance, and Ayame held up a finger to her lips and grinned, hiding her anxiety behind a smile. She was startled when she saw that it was Danzo himself who had arrived with the message, disguised as one of Hanzo's men. Ayame kept to the back of the group and held in her derision and disgust at how fake and friendly he acted. Yahiko, Konan, and Nagato put on a good act for him, and Ayame didn't think he suspected anything amiss. He departed, and Nagato being a sensor, told them when he was truly gone.

They stopped acting at that moment, and Ayame was almost sorry to be right. The message had contained almost everything she warned them of, and whatever doubts the group had against her fell away. Ayame reversed her henge and folded her arms over her chest, her eyes burned with fury, both her Sharingan activating, causing everyone except the three leaders to take a step away from her. She took a deep breath to calm herself.

"That was Danzo Shimura," she hissed. "I suggest you burn his face into your minds."

Yahiko clenched the scroll in his hands, looking betrayed and uncertain.

"I don't understand," he said, his voice uneven. "I thought Hanzo would understand us; we're working towards the same goal."

Ayame cut her eyes to him.

"Don't be so naive," she snapped. "Hanzo is just as afraid of losing his power as anyone is. You're young and strong, of course, he's threatened. Danzo played on his insecurities."

The Akatsuki looked ashen at the revelations that a man they looked up to and admired was not as perfect as they imagined. Ayame forced herself to take another deep breath and calm down, deactivating her Sharingan.

"I'm leaving tonight, do not follow me and do not go to that meeting if you want to live," she said harshly.

"What are you planning to do?" Nagato reached out and took her arm.

She glanced at his hand and then back at his worried and drawn face. There were still things she needed to talk to them about. She closed her eyes.

"You will know my work is complete when it is done," she murmured. "Thank you for housing me, and for…trusting me. Do not forget that Danzo Shimura is your enemy, and should you ever come across a man or boy who shares a resemblance to me, someone who calls himself Ryuu Uchiha, or refers to himself as a Dragon - just, get me a message somehow and - run. Just run."

Not waiting to hear their responses, Ayame returned to the room she'd been staying in and changed into her own clothes, arming herself and preparing for a long night.

* * *

The Purple Ghost did her work quickly once the stage was set. The Iwagakure shinobi were not expecting a lone assailant, and the contingent of shinobi were under the command of an apathetic leader who had prepared them woefully for any ambush or attack. Amegakure was not a country where much of the fighting was taking place and their presence was merely to bully and force the hand of other nations. There were twenty men at the camp, and when the Purple Ghost was done, none were breathing, and only eight bodies remained. The rest were stored in very special, specific scrolls, to be used at her discretion. The Ghost was not foolish enough to allow herself or her home to be implicated in her plots.

Blood dripped down her arms, forming a small puddle on the ground, and she bent to strip the smallest male's uniform from him. She didn't look at his face, knowing that he was younger than she would have liked to kill. But the Ghost left no survivors. Ever.

The Ghost blended into the community easily, muting her chakra, disguising herself as a civilian, while she watched and waited, listening to the gossip as she considered her best course of action. Under the cover of night, the Ghost prepared the traps with the aid of a clone, setting the stage for a frame and a night of bloodshed. She did not think about the citizens of the village, she did not consider them at all. Lingering thoughts were wiped away, emotions were driven ever deeper down. The Ghost was lost inside herself, inside her work.

As the clone prepared the traps, the Ghost infiltrated past the ROOT agents, past Hanzo's own guards, and into the chamber in which her target slept.

The Ghost was not known as a Ghost for nothing. Not even a shinobi as honed and experienced as Hanzo woke upon her entry. Not even when her blade was drawn and her eyes spun red did he wake. At the moment that her blade pierced his skin he woke, but then it was too late, the Ghost's work was done. She removed the scrolls and set the scene. A quick search of the room and her prize was discovered, and the Ghost departed and moved to the next target. Within the hour, blood was spilled, death was come, and the clone began to work.

Amegakure exploded, in the areas with the least civilian population, the bodies of the slain Iwagakure shinobi were left to claim responsibility for the attack, and several necessary sacrifices were made of the shinobi protecting their village. The chaos provided a good cover for escape, and the Ghost became a harried and terrified civilian girl who found time to assassinate several more high-profile targets before she escaped. Her clone dispersed, providing her with the intelligence that the ploy had worked, that Iwa was being blamed.

The Ghost watched with amusement as the ROOT shinobi desperately tried to protect their overlord, claiming innocence, and she faded into the shadows satisfied with her work.

* * *

Konan found Ayame close to the borders of the country, having flown on paper wings through the rain to find her. Her face was impassive and she stood with an inner strength that Ayame matched.

"I thought I said not to follow me," Ayame told her tiredly.

Her face gave away nothing.

"Last night Hanzo the Salamander was assassinated, as were several members of his family, his advisors, and prized shinobi," she said tonelessly. "The village was attacked, they say it was Iwagakure."

"Is that so?" Ayame questioned.

Konan stared at her.

"Children were killed."

"Unfortunate."

Konan's eyes narrowed and Ayame gave a tired sigh.

"I believe Amegakure is in need of your assistance. I suggest a slow transition into power."

"This is not what we wanted."

Konan's voice was distressed.

"No," Ayame said softly. "And yet, in war, sacrifices must be made."

Ayame turned her face to the rain, letting the water fall on her face.

"You may not believe me, but I am sorry. You and your people became unwilling bystanders in a war that is not your own. Rest easy in the knowledge that the blood soaks my hands and mine alone, and I hope you will never live to shoulder the choices that I have."

"I think it would be unwise for you to return to Amegakure in the future," Konan said coldly.

Ayame's lips twitched.

"Live well, Konan."

* * *

Ayame Uchiha strolled back into Konoha, shoulders, and body relaxed, and she smiled at the gate guards, telling them the hot springs are fantastic places to get away to if you wanted to forget the war for a little while. She walked leisurely through the village, enjoying the feel of the sun on her skin, and hearing the sounds of laughter. Closing in on the Hokage's Tower, she saw the ANBU changing shift. She paused as people went passed her, in through the doors to the tower. A cart overturned behind her and Ayame had a kunai in her hand before she realised what she was doing. She blinked and calmed herself, stuffing her kunai away and breathed deeply. She turned away from the tower and headed to her house. It was empty, it was cold.

She went to her parent's old bedroom and laid on the floor, curling up on her side, uncomfortable but unmoving. The Ghost held on tightly to her mind. Her eyes were open but unfocused. She heard the words Konan spoke to her over and over again. She smelled the blood on her hands, she felt it seep from her mind onto the floor around her. Over and over she relived the death and dying, the feeling of her sword piercing skin and muscle, of her hands breaking bones, the clammy and cool skin of her victims.

The Ghost was hard to shed.

She hated it.

She loved it.

The adrenaline. The exhilaration. The remorse. The loathing. The  _power._

She couldn't wait until her avenging heart was satisfied until  _his_  blood soaked her hands.

She didn't want to kill anymore.

She needed it.

She hated it.

She was a good liar.


	12. Part Three: Kannabi Bridge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter takes place TWO YEARS after the last chapter.

 

**Chapter Eleven**

"You do understand that this promotion means that you will have to fix your habit of tardiness, don't you, Kakashi?"

Kakashi tilted his head slightly and looked blankly at the Hokage, as if not understanding what the man was talking about.

"Tardiness, Lord Hokage?"

He could practically feel Minato-sensei's blood pressure rising in embarrassment and exasperation, and he wasn't even in the room.

"Yes, Kakashi," the Hokage sounded slightly exasperated himself. "Jonin are required to attend to time-sensitive matters. You cannot be late."

Kakashi frowned slightly.

"I'm always on time though?"

"Kakashi," the Hokage sighed. "You were two and a half hours late to this meeting."

"Really?"

Kakashi was thoroughly enjoying this and the Hokage knew it. He saw a vein twitch in the Hokage's forehead and was glad he had a mask on so no one could see his smile.

"Maybe the messenger was late," Kakashi mused.

"Or, maybe  _you_  were late," the Hokage said.

"It doesn't really sound like me though," Kakashi replied easily.

The Hokage finally sighed in defeat.

"No, of course not," he said tiredly. "Congratulations on your promotion to Jonin, Kakashi."

"Thanks. I feel like you're lacking some enthusiasm about it though," Kakashi replied, taking his new jacket from the Hokage.

Lord Third's eye twitched, and Kakashi gave a small, lazy wave and left quickly before he pushed the Hokage too far, he was aware of his limits as a thirteen-year-old compared to a thirty-year-old, there was only so much he could get away with at the moment. Faintly he wondered as he walked back to his house if Obito would get him a gift this time around - one that wasn't on his death bed or a body part.

Kakashi felt a spike of anxiety within him. The closer that they all came to thirteen, the more his dreams started turning dark and pain-filled. He knew it was illogical for him to be so anxious. They all knew what would happen and they were prepared, and maybe they wouldn't even be assigned the same mission. No matter the rationale and logic he used, it didn't seem to matter to his psyche. As he walked, Kakashi clutched more tightly at the green jacket with a racing heart, careful to keep his expression neutral to any observers.

 _Everything's going to be fine_ , he told himself, keeping his thoughts from edging into the hysteria that threatened. They had nothing to worry about. Nothing at all. Obito was going to be fine. His throat closed up a little and Kakashi forced himself to walk calmly to his house, and not break into a sprint there, even though his entire body was crawling with the need to get out of public view.

The moment Kakashi reached his apartment, he threw open his door and ran to the bathroom, ripping down his mask and gagging into his toilet. Nothing came out as he retched and after a moment, he felt back on his hind and leaned against the cool bathroom wall, his knees drawn up to his chest and head back against the wall. Kakashi closed his eyes and breathed deeply, in an out, steady and slow. Being named a jonin again, on the same day, at the same time… things were happening in the same way they did before. Something things will be the same. He couldn't…Kakashi  _couldn't_  lose them again.

He stared at his hand, which was trembling, and recalled the blood that soaked it after it pierced Rin. Kakashi's Chidori was incomplete still, just like before he had Obito's Sharingan. He was working to perfect it, but it was proving a difficult task. Still, despite the fact that it had been what killed Rin, the Chidori was a part of what made Kakashi Kakashi.. he felt this desperation to regain it like it had attached itself to his insides and wouldn't let go.

In less than a year the war would end. In less than a year Kakashi had to ensure that both his teammates stayed alive. He took a few deep, slow, controlled breaths and stood to wash his hands and look at himself in the mirror. He'd been enjoying his time back as a child, but things were getting serious now. They were weeks away from the mission that changed his life forever, and he suddenly felt underprepared. But he wasn't, and he knew that rationally but rationale didn't matter much when he felt like this. He looked back down at his hands and curled his fingers into a fist. He needed to train.

* * *

The Hokage looked over the map of the five great nations with a heavy sigh in his chest and a weight on his shoulders. The war had ravaged them all, and the Leaf was not faring as well as it had been. The shinobi of the leaf were strong, but they were outnumbered. He was having to rely on skill and power, and if he lost even a handful of the shinobi fighting, they would be in dire straits.

He had avoided sending Tsunade to the battlefield for almost the entire war, but he may not have the option to hold her back much longer, especially considering that Ayame had become even more difficult in the last two years. Whatever her last activity was as the Ghost had affected her. He had not been informed of er activities directly, but he was observant enough that see that she was more smug, more loathing of Danzo and that he had returned from his own mission frustrated. Hiruzen deduced that she had somehow interfered with his activities, but the part of him that needed the two of them to work in the shadows didn't allow him to inquire further into their deeds.

Iwagakure was the biggest problem they faced. The Stone had superior numbers, but not superior skill. If, however, they were able to cut off their supply chain and reinforcements, Konoha would be at a distinct advantage. The Mist was an irritant. They were less numerous, but more ruthless, aiming to kill the genin and chunin and cut off the legs of Konoha's future. Kumogakure and Suna were not major players in the war, but they were taking every advantage. Kumo was stealing kekkai genkai wherever they could, and for that reason, Kushina Uzumaki had not been sent to any region they had a presence. Konoha could not afford to lose its jinchuuriki, and Kumo already had two tailed-beasts, if they gained a third the war would never end and he did not want to see Minato pushed beyond the point of reason losing the woman he loved. He was too valuable to them.

He tapped his pipe, spilling the ash slightly over the map and made his decision. Iwa needed to be halted, first and foremost. The Leaf was currently locked in a battle with their forces, and according to Jiraiya and Orochimaru's reports, they were not faring well. The Hokage made a small motion with his hand, and an ANBU landed before him, kneeling with his head bowed.

"Bring me Minato Namikaze," he said.

The ANBU disappeared. Hiruzen took a blank mission scroll from the small pile beside him and scribbled out the details, and five minutes later, Minato was at his door. He could always count on Minato to be punctual, so how two of his students turned out to be the least punctual people in the entire village, Hiruzen would never understand. Minato approached him and lowered into a kneel.

"Lord Hokage," he said deferentially.

"Minato. I have a mission for you," he said.

Minato raised his head, eyes serious and intent.

"As you know, Kakashi Hatake was given his promotion to jonin some days ago, as such, this is a pincer mission where you will be solo, and Kakashi will lead Obito and Rin."

Minato inclined his head in understanding. The Hokage peered down at the map.

"Tell me what you see, Minato," he said.

He glanced up to observe Minato as the young man surveyed the map.

"Konoha is stretched thin," he said after a moment. "We face enemies on all sides, but…" he furrowed his brow in concentration. "I believe the most pressing concern we have is against the Stone in Kusagakure."

The Hokage held back his pleased smile and handed Minato over the scroll.

"Team Kakashi's mission is simple but still dangerous. I have no doubt they are capable of success, and indeed, they must succeed if Konohagakure is to survive this war. The Iwagakure forces, as you say, are our most pressing concerns. Our scouts have observed that this bridge," he pointed to a place on the map, "is how they are able to continue to feed their soldiers on the front lines reinforcements and weapons. Team Kakashi's task will be to destroy this bridge and therefore cut off their supply lines. You, Minato, will go to the front lines and aide Hamaki Mimura's battalion against the Iwa forces, providing a distraction for Team Kakashi's mission and to aide them. From the intelligence we have received, we are close to losing our position, and our numbers dwindle as theirs raise. If that happens, Iwagakure will have an almost clear shot to Konoha, and that cannot be allowed."

Minato gave him a serious nod.

"I understand, Lord Hokage."

"These missions are time-sensitive, Minato, and vital to our success in this war. Failure is not an option. I apologise that I cannot spare any other shinobi to accompany you to the front lines, but I trust you will succeed."

"I will not allow the Leaf to be threatened, Lord Hokage," Minato answered severely. "We will leave today."

"Good. Dismissed."

Minato handed back the mission scroll and disappeared. The Hokage let out a sigh and sat back on his cushion, and then wrote out the next set of orders for Jiraiya and Orochimaru, to keep an eye on Suna.

* * *

They weren't late.

Kakashi had abandoned his usual clothes in favour of the common outfit for Konoha jonin; dark pants and shirt, his green flak jacket over the top and his chakra saber strapped to his back. He looked exactly as Sakumo used to.

Minato saw the looks on the faces of his team and knew that there was something more to this mission, and when he noticed that neither Kakashi or Obito were wearing their chakra restraints, he understood it was something very serious. More important than any of that: they weren't late. He frowned at them, conflicted. He knew they had knowledge of the future, but from what he gathered, several things had changed and were different, and that meant they couldn't rely solely on their foreknowledge any longer.

He waited until they were a distance from Konoha before he paused and looked at the three of them. Even Rin had been quiet. The three of them looked up at him with some surprise.

"Is something wrong, sensei?" Rin asked.

Minato wondered how to approach the topic.

"What happened on the Kannabi Bridge mission in the past is irrelevant now," he said firmly. "You can't go into this mission dwelling on the past. Too much has been altered and there is every chance things will turn out far differently than you once experienced."

He didn't like the blank and emotionless look Kakashi was giving him or the slight trembling of Rin's jaw. Obito was the one who spoke.

"Minato-sensei. Thank you for your concern."

Polite Obito was a bad sign. Minato rubbed his temple and shook his head.

"Listen here, all three of you," he said sharply, satisfied that they all stood a little straighter. "We are shinobi of the Leaf, are we not?"

"Yes, sensei," they chorused.

"Then act like it," he demanded. "Don't sulk or dwell on things that can't be changed, look to the future ahead of you  _now_  and make the best of it."

There was a pause before Rin stepped forward and smiled.

"Thank you, sensei."

She turned to the other two and gave them little chops on the head.

"Let's make sure our mission is a success."

Kakashi and Obito shared a glance and almost smiled. The tension lifted, and their walk to Kusa was a little lighter than before.

"Oh!" Rin suddenly exclaimed a while later. "Sensei, wait. We have to give Kakashi his gifts."

She rummaged through her bag and Minato smiled.

"Of course, how could I forget?" He pulled out one of his kunai. "Congratulations, Kakashi, on making jonin. My gift to you is one of my special kunai. It's a little unorthodox and heavy, but you'll get used to it."

Kakashi accepted it gratefully.

"Thanks, sensei," he gave a crinkle-eyed smile.

"Here," Rin said. "A personalised med-kit for you."

Kakashi hummed.

"Oh, this is new."

He had a hint of sarcasm in his voice and Rin giggled and shrugged happily. Kakashi packed the kunai and med-kit in his backpack and then looked at Obito, and held out his hand expectantly.

"When we get home," Obito said. "I didn't bring it."

Kakashi narrowed his eyes, not believing him.

"Honestly, it's a big present, I can't bring it on a mission!" Obito insisted.

Rin folded her arms over her chest.

"Are you lying?" She asked Obito.

"No!"

Kakashi looked away and lowered his hand.

"You better not be lying, Obito. I'm not going to take the last gift you gave me," he muttered.

Minato saw Obito flinch and Rin look stricken, and he wondered what the gift was that had them reacting so viscerally.

"I already told you I wasn't going to give you that," Obito said quietly.

Kakashi stared at him for a while and then nodded.

"Good. Because I don't want it, loser."

He smirked, and the atmosphere lifted again, much to Minato's relief.

"Hey, Bakashi! Don't call me a loser, idiot!"

Minato smiled as they bickered while they walked, and felt a little more optimistic about the success of their respective missions.

* * *

They came across the first Iwa sentry after they crossed the border into Kusa, much the same as last time, but unlike the last time, Kakashi didn't insist that he take on all of the enemies alone. It was difficult, but Kakashi swallowed his pride and agreed to work with Minato and take out the clones and original together while Obito guarded Rin. His Chidori was still incomplete, but Kakashi needed the experience to perfect it. He made the signs for the jutsu and his hand was encased in lightning. Minato looked at it, and then at Kakashi.

"The Chidori," Kakashi murmured. "Let's go, sensei."

They moved out. Kakashi destroyed the clones easily enough, but unlike their previous lives, Minato did not have to save him. He used his head and didn't engage the enemy so recklessly as before. Once he saw the clone with a sword, he released his Chidori and attacked with his own saber, but before he could attack or dodge, the clone dispersed in a pop. Kakashi blinked and realised that Minato had already killed the original. He felt a small wave of exhaustion wash over him. The Chidori used up a lot of chakra in general and even more now, in its unrefined form. He shook his head slightly and flickered back to Rin and Obito, meeting Minato there.

"That jutsu is good, Kakashi, but it's still incomplete," Minato said to him.

Kakashi nodded. "I know."

"I would prefer if you didn't use it again in battle. You'll be at a disadvantage that could cost you your life if you move to quickly to counter their counterattacks."

"Yes, sensei."

Kakashi was disappointed, and Minato gave a little chuckle.

"Don't get too down, Kakashi. We'll work on it when we're back at the Leaf. For now, let's push on until we find a suitable place to rest up for the night, so we can be at our best for our mission."

They camped an hour from the border of the Land of Fire in a small clearing by a giant boulder that protected their backs. Both Minato and Obito were adept sensors, so as a team they weren't too worried about surprise attacks, but they all knew better than to let down their guard. Minato took the first, and longest, watch. He was joined by Obito when Kakashi and Rin had fallen asleep.

"You ought to be resting, Obito," Minato gently admonished.

Obito gave a small shrug.

"I don't think I'll sleep much tonight," he murmured.

Minato glanced at him before looking back out over the area.

"This was an important mission for you three, wasn't it?" He questioned quietly.

Obito gave a breathy grunt, sounding scornful and upset.

"The most important," he muttered.

Minato looked at him.

"Are you all right?" He asked.

Obito twisted his mouth.

"I have…many regrets. Some," he glanced at Minato with pain in his eyes, and then looked quickly away, "haunt me every single day," he breathed, closing his eyes.

"The Battle of Kannabi Bridge was…the end of Obito Uchiha."

Minato felt his chest constrict, unsure if he wanted to hear anything else, but unable to voice an objection when Obito clearly needed to get the things weighing him down off his chest. Without his usual mask of youthful naiveté, Obito looked far more weary than he should for a thirteen-year-old. Then again, he was much more than that on the inside. Obito chuckled darkly.

"I didn't give Kakashi a gift for his promotion before. I was too jealous." He shook his head. "We were sitting right here, where we are now, and you told me about his father. It helped me understand him more," Obito went on. "I… tried harder to not react so much to him, to treat him better, and we started to get along."

"Are you sure you want to tell me this?" Minato asked him.

Obito looked at him seriously.

"Minato-sensei, I know you said you didn't want to know the future, and I respect that, and you were right that we can't rely on our foreknowledge for everything. But," Obito swallowed. "Yesterday and today, where we walked, what happened, it's all the same," his voice dropped into a whisper. "We were warned that some things would be different and others would stay the same."

"Destiny is hard to change," Minato murmured, uncertain of how else to respond.

Time-travel, destiny, those concepts were ambiguous and intangible to him. Try as he might, he could do little more than empathise and sympathise with the struggles of his students.

"Something like that," Obito scoffed quietly. "Sensei, I'm going to tell you what happened to me." He sounded hesitant. "And why Kakashi is…the way he is, instead of what the village reported him to be because he was like that…before everything. He used to care only for rules and regulations, and never talked about his father."

Minato gave a nod, his curiosity winning out over his reservations.

"Thank you for your trust, Obito."

Obito looked up at the star-speckled sky, and Minato realised by his expression that this was not Obito the adolescent speaking to him anymore, this was Obito the man.

"After we parted for our separate missions, things went from bad to worse. Rin was kidnapped by Iwa shinobi."

Minato's jaw clenched.

"Kakashi and I argued about what to do: I wanted to go after her immediately, he wanted to finish the mission first and then go after her. We couldn't agree, so we went separate ways. I tracked down where they'd taken Rin, but they sensed I was there. The shinobi that came to kill me was strong and I was attacked, but Kakashi saved me."

Minato saw Obito's hands clench.

"He was injured. Badly. His eye was gone…seeing him, knowing that he'd abandoned his own principles to come back for me, for Rin - I swore that I wasn't going to let anything else hurt them, and my Sharingan activated and I killed the shinobi that hurt him."

Obito looked down at his white knuckles.

"Rin never broke under the genjutsu, she was strong. We rescued her, but the other shinobi escaped and brought down the cave around us, and I…Kakashi was hit with a rock and fell unconscious so got him away and was crushed in his place."

Minato's eyes widened in shock.

"Obito…"

Obito gave him a wry smile.

"So I did eventually give Kakashi a gift, one that helped him be known as one of the greatest shinobi the Leaf had ever produced. To replace the eye he lost, I gave him my Sharingan. Kakashi was never the same after that, it was for the better, really, but I think we all would have preferred for that idiot to learn the value of teamwork and respecting his teammates in a less tragic way."

Minato was stunned into silence as he absorbed what Obito told him. He began to understand the subtle and not-so-subtle interactions and atmosphere that his team had been having for the entire day.

"I should have died."

Obito's voice was so low and so much closer to a growl than speech that Minato almost missed what he said.

"But I didn't, and I - " He cleared his throat. "Minato-sensei."

Obito looked at him again, the determination and seriousness of his gaze made Minato fully focus on him.

"Even if Sakura and Itachi hadn't completed their mission, and even if Madara and Zetsu were alive, and even if this mission goes the same way as it did last time, I will  _never_  forget who I am."

He held his fist tightly and thumped it against his heart.

"I - I need you to know that I won't let destiny decide what happens to me, to y- to any of us."

Minato didn't miss the hasty way he cut off whatever he'd been about to say in his passion.

"I swear that I will never turn my back on my village or become the kind of trash that abandons his friends."

Minato stared at Obito, seeing the intensity of his declaration and the fire in his eyes. This was the vow of someone who had made all the worst mistakes in his life, and whose resolve was strengthened by the dark road he'd once tread. Minato didn't know what he had done, he'd only been able to piece together that Obito had become some kind of criminal and had allied with a mad Madara Uchiha, and threatened the destruction of the world. But, Minato had never known that person, the only Obito Uchiha he knew was one that was fiercely loyal, determined, strong in both mind and spirit. He met Obito's gaze evenly.

"I place my trust in you, Obito Uchiha."

Minato laid his hand over Obito's trembling fist at his chest and gave him a gentle smile.

"I do not need to know the darkness you have seen to know who you are  _here_  — "

He pressed a little hard, letting the pressure of Obito's fist demonstrate that Minato meant inside his heart. Obito's eyes shone in the light of the moon and the fire.

"I believe in you."

Minato released his hand and Obito gave a short nod and released a shaking breath. They sat in silence together for a time before Minato saw him yawn and frowned.

"Obito, get some rest, please," he gently ordered.

Obito swallowed and looked up at the moon, letting out a little sigh Minato recognised as relief but didn't understand what it meant.

"Goodnight, Minato-sensei, and… thank you."

It was a thank you for more than just the order to rest, and in the silence between them, it went unsaid and understood.

* * *

The time came for them to part ways.

"The enemy was doing surveillance alone yesterday, but from here on out, we'll be fighting against teams. Be careful," Minato warned them.

Kakashi could see that Minato-sensei was conflicted. It was their fault. He had a mission of his own, a very important one that would become one of the major reasons why the war would come to an end, and they had distracted him with their own troubles. Minato-sensei needed to be focused and not worried about them. Kakashi stepped forwards, his head held high, his shoulders back, and looked squarely at him.

"Minato-sensei now is not the time to be worried about us." He said, giving his sensei the serious eyes he had only ever used on his own subordinates and genin teams. "Believe in us, just like we believe in you."

Minato's face softened for a moment before he steeled his expression, his doubts gone and mind focused again.

"Both of our missions are of vital importance to ensure the safety of the Leaf and aide to the end of the war," Minato said.

 _Failure is not an option._  The words went unsaid.

"Good luck, Team Kakashi," he said to them.

"Good luck, Minato-sensei," Rin said.

Kakashi inclined his head to Minato.

"See you soon, sensei," Obito said with a smile.

Minato gave Obito a long look.

"Don't forget what I told you, Obito," he said.

Obito gave a short nod and it was time for them to leave. Minato-sensei left first, and quickly, and Kakashi turned to the two of them.

"I have a plan," he said slowly. "But I don't think you'll like it."

Obito narrowed his eyes and Rin sighed impatiently.

"I've already thought about that, and I agree with you. It's the best option," Rin said, surprising Kakashi with the firmness in her voice.

"You can't," Obito shook his head.

Kakashi clenched his jaw. He didn't like it any more than Obito, but if Rin had considered it already than he knew that she wasn't going to change her mind and she was right, it was the best option.

"It's not just about us, Obito," Kakashi said quietly. "This mission is important for the village."

Obito looked away.

"It's efficient," Rin insisted. "If we avoid them, we don't know what could happen. If we let them live, they might become incredibly dangerous enemies in the future."

"You can't just offer yourself up again," Obito said quietly.

Rin put her hands on her hips.

"I'm doing my duty as a shinobi of the Leaf," she said in a strong voice, looking between him and Kakashi with determined eyes. "So you make sure that you do yours. We have to get moving. Let's go."

Kakashi and Obito shared a glance, but neither was able to come up with a solid argument against her. They didn't want to relive the mission, but at the same time, changing too much could mean something even worse might happen, and that was something they wouldn't allow.

* * *

It went against every fiber of their beings to all Rin to be taken again, but this time, there was no arguing about what to do or philosophical disagreement about the nature of shinobi. Kakashi and Obito didn't hesitate, they waited a few minutes and then followed.

"No losing an eye this time," Obito said to Kakashi as they ran through the forest.

Kakashi glanced at him.

"No getting crushed this time," he replied.

Obito gave a small smirk and looked ahead.

"We're almost there."

Obito activated his Sharingan, and Kakashi couldn't help but feel slightly envious. He'd lived most of his life with one, and knew how powerful the Sharingan was, still, now he had the chance to create a new name for himself without feeling all the same guilt and shame that came with having a dead friends power, which was, on balance, preferable. Obito slunk into the shadows of the forest while Kakashi moved forwards to perch himself on the tree where Obito was attacked in their previous life. He was the bait, to draw out the shinobi guarding the area, and Obito would take him down since he was the only one of them who could see through the camouflage.

Obito saw a quick flash of chakra, and the sentry appeared behind Kakashi. Kakashi had a kunai in his hand and turned, swiping out at the shinobi, and Obito quietly and quickly moved, grinning as the sentry camouflaged himself and moved to attack Kakashi again. Kakashi's eyes darted as he tried to find the Iwa shinobi, his stance was low and defensive, his father's chakra saber was held tightly in his fist.

Obito appeared on the branch of the tree, behind the unsuspecting Iwa shinobi who hadn't sensed him yet. He saw Kakashi notice him and turned his attention to the threat.

"I can see you," he said in a voice reminiscent of the sing-song voice of Tobi.

The Iwa shinobi flinched but before he could do anything, Obito plunged his kunai into his spine.

"B-but, how?" The shinobi spluttered, his camouflage wearing off as he became visible to Kakashi as well. He looked back at Obito and his eyes widened. "Those - those eyes."

Obito ripped his kunai from the man's back, severing his spine as he did it, feeling a sense of detachment as he did it. He looked at the dying shinobi coldly and he fell face-first on the branch and then slid off to the ground.

"Obito."

Kakashi's voice was sharp.

"Let's go."

They faintly heard the thud of the body as he hit the ground. They flickered to the entrance to the cave, and Obito felt a flash of something. He paused and turned back, casting out his sensors again, but felt nothing. The hair on the back of his neck rose, and he frowned. Kakashi elbowed him, drawing his attention back to the situation at hand, but the lingering sense that there was something out there remained in the back of his mind. Inside the cave, the Iwa shinobi was crouched in front of Rin. He turned his shaggy head and glowered.

"They're all so pathetic," he muttered in annoyance, standing and turning to face the two of them.

"Genjutsu," Obito murmured to Kakashi who nodded.

Two blades unsheathed from beneath the arm wrappings of the Iwa shinobi who rushed them with a manic smile on his face. Kakashi and Obito worked together seamlessly. As the blade of the shinobi came for them, Obito jumped at it swiped at him, and Kakashi twisted away from the second blade, countering the kick with his bent leg, and the blade with his own. Obito crouched a moment, landing easily on his feet before Kakashi retreated behind him and Obito used a kunai to block to two blades coming down for him as he rose up to meet the attacks.

They engaged in a fierce two-on-one battle, with Kakashi's blade meeting the blades of the Iwa-nin, and Obito using his kunai and taijutsu to attack him. The shinobi was just as skilled and strong as Obito remembered him, he was incredibly fast and moved his body and blades with precision. Obito leaned back as the blades crossed and swiped above him, and he saw Kakashi coming. He quickly flicked his legs up, his stomach straining, and caught the shinobi on his arms as he was bringing the swords back forwards, allowing Kakashi time to jump over him and bring his saber down and slice through the shinobi's shoulder and chest. Obito landed with a thud, the air knocked out of his lungs for a moment before he stood.

"We need to finish him off," Kakashi muttered, his eyes darkening. "He's the one who brought down the cave."

Obito glanced at Kakashi.

"Go get Rin," he said quietly. "I'll do it."

Kakashi ran off to Rin and Obito felt his expression darken as he reached down and gripped the unconscious shinobi's hair in his hand and pulled his head up, his detachment giving way to deep-seated and long-ignored rage and anguish. He took his kunai and tapped the man's face with it. Blood poured into a small pool, dripping from the wound on his shoulder, and just as he groaned and his eyes fluttered into consciousness, Obito stabbed his kunai through the man's temple and into his brain. His eyes rolled back and Obito pulled out the kunai and dropped his head hard. He looked up at see Kakashi and Rin staring at him. Rin ran over to him and wrapped her arms around him, surprising him.

"Let's get out of here," she whispered.

Obito swallowed, not returning the embrace. He gripped his kunai tightly and saw Kakashi walking towards them.

"The bridge is guarded," Kakashi said. "They'll have shinobi coming here soon. These guys were just an advance team. We have to complete our mission."

Rin let him go, and Obito nodded. He glanced at her and saw that she was looking at him worriedly.

"Are you all right?" He asked.

"I'm fine," she replied. "Are you?"

He wasn't sure.

"Yes," he nodded. "You heard, Bakashi. Let's get going."

Rin tried to smile, but it didn't reach her eyes. Until they were back home, safe in the Leaf Village, none of them could relax or be truthful when they smiled.

* * *

Minato could hear the earth shifting and feel the vibrations under his feet as he ran towards the front lines.

"Let me make it in time," he breathed, his eyes sharpening as he increased his speed.

He arrived at the edge of the battlefield and sensed Hamaki's battalion - a mere four shinobi inside a trench of earth, being battered by earth-style ninjutsu and a far, far superior force of Iwa shinobi closing in on them. The carnage he saw made his blood chill. He could see the prone bodies of his fellow Leaf shinobi and forced himself to keep a cool head as he ran and flipped, landing inside the trench with Hamaki and the others.

"Minato!" Hamaki exclaimed.

"Hamaki," Minato acknowledged. "The Hokage sent me."

Hamaki explained the situation, though it was fairly evident. The four survivors were tiring quickly, and Iwa was advancing. Minato quickly unpacked his kunai, laying them all out on the ground. He had to end this fight for his village, and for those who had sacrificed themselves to protect it.

"Everyone, please throw these kunai out at the enemy's side concurrently," Minato ordered. He looked over at Iwa's side and his eyes narrowed. "Afterwards, I'll take care of this myself."

He spoke with fierce determination and climbed to the top of the trench, hidden from Iwa by the dust cloud from the constant movement of the earth. There was an exclamation behind him, but Hamaki shushed the men.

"Quiet! Do not doubt him. We'll be able to see Konoha's Yellow Flash in action now. Don't blink, even for a second."

Minato closed his eyes and took a deep breath, he and pulled out three kunai in each hand and with a quick flick of his wrist, launched them to the enemies side.

"Now, men!" Hamaki ordered.

Minato disappeared in a yellow flash, and when he was done, the only sound to break the silence was the sound of his own panting breath as a thousand enemy shinobi lay dead.

* * *

Obito, Rin, and Kakashi ran across the thick branches of the trees towards the bridge and their objective. Obito held up a fist and they all stopped on the branch.

"There's fourteen shinobi coming this way," he said.

Kakashi nodded, his hand flexed and Obito noticed it.

"Don't use the Chidori unless you have to," Obito warned him.

Kakashi flashed him an annoyed glance.

"I know other jutsu besides that, loser," Kakashi muttered.

"You protect Rin this time," Obito said to him. His eyes spun into his Mangeyko Sharingan. "I've got this."

"Are you sure?" Rin asked him. "You don't have to do this alone."

Obito gave her a tight smile.

"Don't worry, Rin. They won't touch me."

"But, fourteen - "

"Don't do something stupid," Kakashi cut her off, looking at Obito.

"I'm not dying today," Obito replied, drawing out a kunai in each hand. "And neither are you two."

He jumped from the branch as Kakashi and Rin took to conceal themselves within the leafy branches above. The Iwa shinobi stopped short as Obito landed in a crouch before them.

"It's just a kid," one of them scoffed.

Obito slowly raised his head and stood, giving them a cheerful grin.

"Hey! What are you guys doing here?" He greeted them.

Sometimes he worried how easy it was for him to slip into his Tobi-like childish persona.

"We don't have time for this."

A kunai flew at Obito's head…and passed right through. Then another, and another and another. Obito didn't move.

"What - what's happening?"

"Eyes! Look at his eyes!"

"How is that possible? They passed through him!"

Obito spun his kunai in his hand and attacked the unnerved group of shinobi. He held his intangible form, and their attacks passed through him and their panic rose. Unable to touch him, the Iwa scrambled about, wildly attacking and Obito their attacks against each other, maneuvering so they would kill their own comrades, as he took out those that remained. When he was finished, he stood in the clearing, blood dripping from his kunai. Kakashi and Rin landed softly behind him. He turned his head slightly.

"Orders, Kakashi?" He asked.

The feeling of cold detachment had returned.

"Move out," Kakashi said.

Just as they were about to move, Minato suddenly appeared beside Kakashi.

"Minato-sensei?" Rin exclaimed, her hand at her chest.

Minato took in the bodies around them with a hard eye, taking in the bodies and then flickering to quickly survey all three of them. Obito saw the flicker of relief that in his expression that they were uninjured.

"What happened?" He asked.

"Reinforcements," Kakashi answered. "For the scouting party we ran into earlier. We're on our way to the bridge to finish the mission."

Minato nodded, that wasn't the whole story, but for now it was enough.

"Then let's go."

Obito felt the skin on the back of his neck prickle and he tensed, the motion immediately noticed by the rest of his team, who all tensed as well, ready for attack. It was the same feeling that he felt at the caves, his eyes darted around and he looked up.

"My, my. What wonderful eyes you have, Obito Uchiha."

Kakashi drew his saber, Rin crouched in a defensive stance with shuriken in her hands, and Minato-sensei followed Obito's stare upwards, to the branch of a tree at the end of the small clearing, where a dark-haired figure was perched upon. The voice was masculine, but not deep, and Obito narrowed his eyes suspiciously.

"Who are you?" He called out.

The person responded by dropping from the branch to the clearing, landing in a crouch, his head hanging low, his long black hair tied back in a ponytail. Obito saw the Uchiha crest on his back. He hissed and jumped away quickly, standing with his team, kunai raised defensively across his body. The boy raised his head slowly, revealing black eyes and a face with such familiarity that Obito flinched. The boy's smile was cutting, not the kind of smile that was often seen on a child who couldn't have been older than ten. He tilted his head to the side, studying the four of them.

"What? Can't see the family resemblance?" He asked, tutting. "Surely Ayame's told you  _all_  about me?"

The look on his face made it clear that he knew they didn't know.

"Pity," he said when they remained silent. "My sister is rather predictable, to me at least. To others, she's wildly uncontrollable, but I know her well enough to know she won't tell you four the real truth, not yet, not even when it concerns you the most."

"Sister?" Rin breathed.

Obito never took his eyes off the boy who looked like Madara and Ayame.

"Ayame is your sister?" Kakashi asked.

Ryuu had been looking solely at Obito until Kakashi spoke, and then his eyes darkened.

"Kakashi Hatake."

The name was spoken with derision.

"How underwhelming to meet the man I was so frequently compared to in my mother's eyes," Ryuu sneered.

Obito glanced at Kakashi, who was looking at Ryuu with a critical gaze.

"So you are the son of Madara Uchiha and Sakura," Minato said.

Ryuu's eyes flickered to Minato.

"Minato Namikaze, the Yellow Flash, the future - " he cut off with a laugh and held up his hands. "Oops. Sorry. No spoilers."

Obito narrowed his eyes.

"What do you want?" Obito asked. "How are you so young?"

Ryuu looked down at his body.

"Ah. This isn't my real body," he shrugged. "It's just one I had laying around. Can't you feel the chakra draining as the seconds go by? I don't have much longer to chat with you, but I've been bored, waiting for this war to end, and I wanted to meet you all  _so much."_

He sounded like a giddy child for a moment, grinning.

"Why did you want to meet us?" Minato questioned. "What do you want with the Leaf Village?"

"The Leaf? What makes you think I care about that place?" Ryuu scoffed. "All I want to do is correct the natural order. Surely, of all people, Obito you understand what it's like to want to create a world of only good things,  _Tobi."_

Obito flinched.

"Enough," Kakashi said in a hard tone. "Why are you here? What do you have to gain by revealing yourself to us?"

Ryuu's eyes narrowed on Kakashi.

"Little more than self-satisfaction and the knowledge that my sister keeps her secrets no longer. There's little time to waste, after all. One war ends and another begins."

Obito bared his teeth as Ryuu made a hand sign and then his body suddenly crumpled to the ground. Team Minato stood frozen for a moment, stared at the boy turning to ash before their eyes. Obito looked at Kakashi and Rin, and then they looked up at Minato, whose hard expression made them swallow.

"I think Ayame has some explaining to do," Minato said in a low and angry voice.

Obito had to agree. They had all reached the conclusion that whatever threat Sakura had warned them about, whatever Ayame had been hiding from them until whenever she deemed the right moment, was now revealed. The enemy was her brother, Sakura's son. Obito looked at Kakashi, and saw the emotion in his friend's eyes, and knew he must have been feeling a lot of different things for his once student.

"What did he mean, one war ends and another begins?" Rin asked nervously.

"I think he means that once this war is over, the real fight for the world is going to begin," Obito muttered. "I don't know what he wants… a balanced world? What does that mean?"

"I don't know," Minato said with a frown. "But right now we have a mission to complete and a war to win. Don't lose focus."

Obito nodded.

"Let's move out," Kakashi ordered, half-heartedly.

"Kakashi." Minato stopped them with his tone. "I understand this is a lot for you to take in, but don't let it distract you from what needs to be done.'

"Yes, sensei." Kakashi rolled his shoulders and breathed deeply, his eyes cleared and Minato nodded. "Let's go."

Kakashi took the lead, and they followed behind. A few hours later, Team Minato were all headed back to the Leaf Village. Kannabi Bridge was destroyed. The Iwa battalion threatening to overrun the Leaf were slain, their prospective missions were successful. No injuries, no eyes lost, no cave-ins. But the sense of foreboding in each of their hearts had settled like a stone, and the sense of relief Obito had thought he'd feel at the not-dying and survival of the mission never came. Instead, the only thing Obito could think about was Ayame and Ryuu, and what the hell was coming next.


	13. Extra Stories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! Not a chapter, but something else! Here are three extra scenes from the story that didn't fit into the main storyline.  
> Also, I don't know why this happened to Nawaki, but it just did. I literally can't get rid of it, every time I try to change it the story is like NOOOOOOOO THIS IS THE TRUTH. So. Yeah. I kind of hate it as much as I love it.  
> 1 - The tragedy of Nawaki Senju  
> 2 - Return from Amegakure (Obito and Ayame story)  
> 3 - Kakashi and Shisui

  **EXTRA #1:  
** **The Tragedy of Nawaki Senju**

* * *

Nawaki was sure that if it wasn't for his lineage or the fact that his sister was one of the most terrifying people in the village, he'd have been one of the many discarded shinobi of the village a long time ago. What good is a shinobi when their spine has been shattered beyond the repair of even the best medic in the world?

It had taken ten years for Nawaki to crawl out of the darkness of his own mind and feel like himself again, and despite his disability, Nawaki had risen. His dream of becoming the Hokage was gone, but his desire to serve the village was as strong now as it had ever been. He took his place on the council at twenty-five, despite strong objections of Homura and Koharu. He became the assistant to Hiruzen and worked closely with the Hokage as a strategist and aide, as well as become a liaison between his sister and the council since he was the more diplomatic of the two.

He was content with his professional life. He was busy, challenged and enjoyed it. The tragedy of his life was not his injury, not his wheelchair. The tragedy was that since he was thirteen years old, Nawaki Senju had been in love with someone who would never love him back. The last twenty years had been filled with fruitless attempts to rid himself of these feelings. It wasn't as if Nawaki was a prime candidate for marriage in any case. His sister had managed to repair enough in his spinal cord for him to have control over his digestive system, for which he was beyond grateful. But the rest of him was a little…touchy. There were times he felt like he might be able to get up and walk, but when he'd attempted that, he'd only done more damage. So his legs were in a constant state of numbness and confusion, an ache he kept at bay with little pills. His manhood was, in a word, unpredictable.

His feelings were a secret that only Jiraiya had discovered since his perceptions about these things were irritatingly accurate, (although only with others - not when they involved himself, he really didn't stand a chance with Tsuna) but he was good at keeping secrets and for that Nawaki was thankful. The worst part about having feelings that would never be requited was that she looked like it might be possible, that she was around his age. To the world, she looked twenty years younger than she was, and that killed him because Ayame Uchiha was as beautiful as she was deadly.

She wasn't even in the village most of the years that he'd loved her. Absence did not make him forget. Distance did nothing. Now that she was here indefinitely, Nawaki wasn't sure how much longer he was going to be able to keep his cool. The good thing was, he supposed, that she had never treated him like a child or a little brother. She treated him as an equal, a friend.

Nawaki's life was enough of a tragedy in other peoples eyes. It was enough; their friendship, trust, and loyalty. It had to be. He'd lost his legs. He wasn't going to lose his dignity as well.

* * *

 **EXTRA #2:**  
**Return from Amegakure**  
\- Chapter 10 -

* * *

Obito sat atop the head of the Second Hokage with a thoughtful grimace on his face. His arms were looped about his knees, and he looked out over the village at the small figures of the people going about their day below.

His mind as whirling with thoughts of Ayame Uchiha, the Akatsuki, and Ame. He didn't know what she was planning on doing, but he knew it wouldn't be easy considering it was going to involve Danzo, Hanzo, Ame, and the Akatsuki - a delicate political matter that could explode in a horrible way. He sighed. He was and would be forever grateful that Sakura and Itachi had disposed of Zetsu and saved Madara, but that left a lot of unknowns in this world for him.

Over a year ago, Ayame had spent an entire evening interrogating him about everything he knew about the Akatsuki: where their base was, about their members, how he and Zetsu had recruited them, what their plans were - everything that she could think of and everything he could remember until there was nothing left in his brain. When he'd tried to tell her that he and Kakashi were planning to get to them before Danzo - if Danzo was still going to target them - she had only laughed and told him not to be stupid. Obito had bristled at that, and she'd patted his head and given him a rare, fond smile.

_"You're going to have other things to worry about, so why don't you let me take care of it until you all grow up a little more."_

He hadn't argued with her after that, and instead considered what she said. He had a feeling that she was trying to protect them. It was frustrating. Obito didn't want or need protection, but he also knew they were stuck in a hard place - to the world, they were just kids, and they were also in the midst of a war. There was only so much that they could do. He knew that Kakashi felt as frustrated as he did. Rin was a little different, but she still wanted to do more.

He sighed again. Early in the day, he'd found out that Danzo had left the village the day after Ayame had, so he knew that whatever Ayame was doing in Ame was definitely going to have something to do with Danzo and Hanzo. But he doubted they'd find out the truth about whatever was happening anytime soon unless they infiltrated Ame and saw it for themselves. Amegakure was the most secretive of all the Hidden Villages - a fact he'd exploited in his previous life - so whatever happened in Ame was going to stay in Ame since he knew Ayame wouldn't say a word, and neither would Danzo.

When the sun began to set, Obito made his way back to the Uchiha District and home but froze when he glanced at Ayame's home and saw one of the windows that had definitely been closed earlier in the day, open. He cautiously entered the courtyard, casting out his senses as he stepped silently across the concrete. He only felt one person, and that was Ayame. He flared his chakra slightly, just enough to let her know he was there, and then kept walking to where she was.

She must have returned that day. The house was cold and dark, and as he walked through the corridors, he felt nervous. The atmosphere made the hair on his arms stand up. He came to a door at a room he'd never entered before since it was always closed. It was cracked open and he placed his hand on the door, pushing it open slowly.

"Ayame?"

He glanced in the room and caught sight of her laying on the floor, curled into a ball. Obito blinked and swallowed.

"Ayame? Are you okay?" He asked quietly.

She made no sound or movement and he stepped into the room, quickly realising it was a bedroom. But the bed, although made, had a thick layer of dust over it. It smelled musty and old. He hesitantly stepped inside and glanced around, pausing when Ayame slowly pushed herself up from the floor, her dark hair hanging over her shoulder and shrouding her face from view. She moved across the ground to lean her back against the bed and hugged herself.

"Please don't make me kill you one day, Obito."

Her voice was little more than a broken whisper. Her face was turned away, so he couldn't see what she looked like, but Obito could imagine it was a broken as her voice. This was a conversation they'd had a few times but in a lighter, mocking manner. She was always warning him not to become Tobi again, to stay as Obito Uchiha. This time, however, her words cut deep into his soul. Not because of what she implied, but because it was the first time he'd ever heard her plead.

"I won't," he answered quietly.

He hadn't realised she was crying until he heard her sniffle. Obito stood awkwardly, unsure of what to do. He'd never seen her like this.

"What happened in Ame?"

Ayma sniffed.

"I'm sure we'll never really know the truth," she murmured.

Obito clenched his jaw and looked at her hands, realising they were trembling.

"Are you okay?" He asked, concerned.

She gave a low hum in her throat.

"I just hate the rain," she replied cryptically. "Everyone dies in the rain."

Obito didn't know how to respond to that comment.

"I liked them more than I thought I would," she said quietly, keeping her face turned away, but raising her chin slightly.

"The Akatsuki?" Obito asked, still standing awkwardly in the doorway.

She hummed in affirmation. Obito looked away for a moment, recalling the past. He had always kept feelings like that locked away in his mind back then, anything that was Obito-like was kept hidden. He hadn't needed friends, only subordinates and pawns. Nagato and Konan were pawns to Obito and Madara. But to Obito…

"You liked them too, didn't you?" Ayame asked as if she knew where his mind was.

"Yes."

Because he had. Perhaps if they'd met under different circumstances, if things were different… sometimes he wondered if they'd have been friends.

"I hope they survive whatever is going to happen next," she murmured.

Obito felt his shoulders relax slightly at the confirmation they were alive.

"So Hanzo is dead then," he stated.

Ayame didn't reply. He didn't expect her too. Instead, she held a trembling hand out to him and finally turned to face him. He kept his mask of impassivity when he saw her pale, vulnerable, weary face and reached out to take her hand. She squeezed it lightly and gave him a shaking smile.

"One day we'll all be free," she breathed. "Right?"

Her eyes were shining with unshed tears, with such a strong sense of desperate hope that Obito suddenly feeling afraid  _for_  her instead of afraid  _of_  her, gave a nod.

"Yeah," he replied, smiling back. "We'll all be free one day."

But free of what? He swallowed as she withdrew from him and curled into herself again. She looked incredibly small. She wasn't a tall woman to begin with, but Obito knew she was far older than she looked, she just didn't look it at that moment: she looked like a child. Whatever had happened in Ame was obviously affecting her a lot. Obito decided it was best to leave her alone. Ayame was unpredictable at the best of times, at the worst, who knew what she might do or say. Just as he was turning to leave, he heard her quiet voice.

"If you speak a word of this to anyone, I will make sure you never speak again."

Obito turned and gave her a small smirk, hearing that there was a little more strength in her voice and a spark in her eye again.

"Don't worry, Ayame. I won't tell anyone you're as human as the rest of us," he said.

The smallest smile tugged at her lips.

"Brat."

"Granny."

She breathed a laugh, and Obito gave her one last look over. Her eyes became unfocused again and he recognised the look in them: eyes that have faced death and its consequences. He left feeling a little worried about her. When Team Minato gathered after finding out that Ayame had returned from Ame, Obito kept silent about what he knew and saw, even when they prodded him for information and opinions. He gave them a flawless, guileless smile and told them he didn't know anything. Some secrets weren't meant for sharing, not until the right time comes. Besides, Obito definitely believed that Ayame would make sure he couldn't talk again. Even when she was suffering, she was terrifying.

* * *

 **EXTRA #3:**  
**Kakashi and Shisui**  
\- 11 & 7 years old -

* * *

Shisui didn't like to go home. It wasn't that he had a bad family, but his mother was always sad and his father was laid up in bed without one of his legs and most days couldn't recognise him. It was hard being in that place. He trained really hard every day so that he could become a ninja as soon as possible. He was tired of being hungry, not that he'd ever complain, but when he saw the other kids with their full lunchboxes, he couldn't help but feel the sharp stab of jealousy. They didn't even know how lucky they were. It was a good thing Shisui had learned to hide his true feelings around his own family, it made it easy to smile in front of friends and strangers.

It wasn't until a couple of months earlier that he met someone who he thought he might be able to relate too. One afternoon they had a special session with the number one genin team in the whole village, Team Minato. Their sensei wasn't there, unfortunately, since Shisui heard that Minato was really fast, and Shisui was much, much faster than everyone else in his class. But he met the rest of the team. He already knew about Obito, since they were in the same clan, and knew that Lord Fugaku was teaching him personally. The girl was  _sooooo_  pretty and nice and a really cool kunoichi, but the one that Shisui was immediately drawn too was the other one, Kakashi Hatake. The orphan.

He graduated from the academy at six.  _Six!_  And he walked like a shinobi and had eyes like a shinobi, and he had a mask covering his face and when he was showing them all the taijutsu moves, he was so awesome. Shisui challenged him immediately and lost, but his heart raced and his eyes lit up when he realised that Kakashi hadn't treated him like a kid and had faced him seriously. He made a vow from that day on that he would become a shinobi just like Kakashi, and until that happened, he would become Kakashi's pupil.

Kakashi tried his best to avoid him, but Shisui didn't let up until he wore Kakashi down and made him accept him, which he did in an odd way. Kakashi made Shisui swear that if he became his disciple, he would do everything Kakashi said without question. Which Shisui immediately agreed to, not realising what he was getting into. Despite the very weird things Kakashi asked of him: like distracting Might Guy (which he discovered what the most horrible thing to do ever), or pranking Anko Mitarashi (which was terrifying when he got caught), or breaking up 'dates' between Asuma and Kurenai, or stealing Kushina Uzumaki's cooking, Shisui actually found that he was enjoying himself.

Kakashi's 'lessons' were more beneficial than he first realised. All Kakashi said when he complained was that Shisui wasn't looking underneath the underneath, and he didn't know what that meant until one day Kakashi asked him a bunch of weird questions.

"So what is Anko's favourite food? Where is Might Guy's favourite place to train? Who many times do Asuma and Kurenai blush when they look at each other within a five-minute span? What is Minato's favourite meal? How often is Anko away on a mission? Who is Might Guy's hero? How many days a week does Kushina go shopping for food?"

It was with some amazement that Shisui realised that he knew the answer to all those questions, and he finally realised that he had unknowingly learned what Kakashi meant by looking 'underneath the underneath.'

So Kakashi's methods were a little unconventional, but once Shisui proved that he understood what Kakashi was doing (up to a point) he finally starting showing Shisui some ninjutsu and taijutsu which was the best thing ever. Sometimes, though, Kakashi-senpai had missions for the war, and when he came home he was always a little different. A little nicer, a little more affectionate, a little quieter. Shisui was conflicted on how to feel about it. On one hand, nice Kakashi was nice, but the war… he was too young to go to the war, he just wanted to help people so they wouldn't end up like this father…

Shisui was determined to make himself into a great shinobi, so he followed Kakashi's every order, even when he knew that it was going to get them trouble. Plus, it was good training when he was trying to escape from the shinobi he pulled pranks on.

* * *

Kakashi sighed heavily and wondered what he had ever done to deserve an addition to the idiots that seemed to gravitate towards him.

Against his outstretched hand, the pressure of a small head pressing at him in an attempt to come closer kept him from concentrating fully on his book, and he was growing annoyed. He wanted to turn his glare on the new Uchiha who apparently would not leave him alone, but he knew that as soon as he looked at Shisui that annoying part of him that sometimes liked the kid would flare up and engage in social activity.

"Oh, come one, Kakashi-senpai! Quit ignoring me already," Shisui whined.

Kakashi couldn't help but enjoy hearing himself called 'senpai,' though it painfully reminded him of someone else he hadn't been able to locate yet. Shisui removed his head from Kakashi's hand and huffed, pouting in annoyance.

"You're so mean, senpai. You said you'd train with me today, and you're just reading your stupid book."

Kakashi's eyes narrowed slightly. It was not a stupid book. Granted, it wasn't Jiraiya's, but it was not stupid either. It was actually about lightning chakra theory and he was trying to absorb the knowledge to perfect the Chidori without a Sharingan.

"You're the worst. You promised."

Kakashi sighed as Shisui stamped his foot and then folded his arms over his chest and sat down on the ground, cross-legged and glowered at him. If only Sasuke had been less brooding and more like Shisui, Kakashi mused. Things might have been less intense.

"You know," Kakashi drawled as he flipped the page of his book. "A shinobi should always be patient."

Shisui, who had straightened with excitement at the sound of Kakashi's voice, slumped in annoyance.

"A shinobi should also be on time," he muttered.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow.

"Did you say something?"

Shisui gave a groan.

"Senpai! Please, please,  _please_  can we train? I'm sooooo bored."

Kakashi was struck with a brilliant idea. He closed his book and sat up, and Shisui looked at him with eager interest.

"Today we're going to work on stealth!" Kakashi announced.

"Really? Cool!" Shisui grinned. "Who are we spying on?"

Kakashi could appreciate the enthusiasm and quickness he had.

"The one and only Obito Uchiha," Kakashi winked.

Shisui looked downhearted.

"I thought it would be someone cooler," he murmured.

"Ah. But you forget, Obito is an idiot who does idiotic things we can blackmail him with."

"This is why you're my senpai, senpai!" Shisui beamed standing up. "I learn lots of stuff with you."

Kakashi suppressed a chuckle, pleased to be leading Shisui down this amusing path to Obito's downfall with him. At the very least, Kakashi could shift all the blame to the kid to take if anything went wrong. Not that he would though. Probably.


	14. PART THREE: KANNABI BRIDGE

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> another 'current age' update:  
> Minato & Kushina: 24 (and married! yaaayyy!)  
> Ayame: 55  
> Ryuu: …. 8/9/10?55?  
> Tsunade/Jiraiya/Orochimaru: 42  
> Nawaki: 37  
> Hiruzen Sarutobi: 68  
> Danzo: 71  
> Ino-Shika-Cho: 27ish  
> Shisui: 9  
> Itachi: 4  
> Sakiko Uchiha: 61

 

**Chapter 12**

"Should we…I mean, do we tell the Hokage?" Rin asked nervously as they were approaching Konoha's gates.

The boys stopped and turned to her, their faces all different mixtures of serious. Kakashi's expression was sorrowful, and it made her heart tighten. She could only imagine how he felt. Meeting Sakura's daughter was an interesting experience, and she was not what Kakashi had expected, but she was still an ally and parts of her were very much like his old student. But now he was faced with the revelation that her son was the one who threatened them all, and she could see it was tearing him up inside. From the little Rin knew of Sakura, she understood that this was something that would have broken her heart.

Obito had been in deep thought for the entire trip home, and Rin was worried about him. The meeting with Ryuu was only half of her concern, however. There was something more, a sense that he was beginning to drift away from them. She'd seen the stark, emotionless and cold way he had looked at the Iwa-nin, and the expressionless eyes. Rin knew that this mission was going to be hard for him, for all of them, but she hadn't expected to feel like she was losing part of him afterward.

Minato-sensei had cold anger and sharp focus around him that frightened her, though she'd never admit it. He was so kind and considerate that sometimes she forgot that he was one of the most lethal shinobi in the world. They hadn't needed to face too much of his criticism or admonishments this time around, and so she felt more sensitive to his darker moods more than ever before, especially since they were so rare.

"Yes."

Minato's response was short and left no room for argument. Kakashi and Obito exchanged uneasy glances and remained quiet. Rin gnawed on her lip.

"This is… it's not what I expected," she said to them. She glanced at Obito. "Do you know anything about him… about Ryuu?"

He shook his head.

"I'll bet my eye that his existence has been part of a cover-up," Obito answered, shaking his head.

"Please don't bet your eyes on anything," Rin said in a strained voice.

Obito gave her a half-smile. She glanced at Kakashi, who was staring at nothing and lost in his thoughts.

"Kakashi?" Rin reached out a hand to him, but let it fall before it touched him.

She saw him refocus and give a fake smile.

"Let's just debrief the Hokage on what happened," he said. "Our missions were important."

She nodded slowly, and Minato led them towards the village. She walked beside Obito, behind Kakashi and Minato, and slipped her hand into his, squeezing it. He looked at her in surprise, and she gave a teary smile.

"You're here," she whispered.

His face softened and he squeezed her hand back.

"Always."

They didn't let go until they reached the village gates.

* * *

Word of their successful missions had already reached Konoha and quickly spread throughout the village, evidenced by the stares of appreciation, admiration, and awe that Team Minato received as they made their way through the village towards Hokage Tower. Kakashi ignored them, unable to focus on anything but the pit of emotion in his stomach. Sakura's son… 

 _Save him, or save everyone else_.

His mind went over that foreboding sentence that had been in the last of the journals Ayame had presented to him. He knew that whoever she'd been writing about was important and close to her, but he never imagined it to be her own son. He felt a pang of pain and anger that he wasn't there for her, that he couldn't have been sent back in time to aid her, to stop whatever happened that made her son turn. Kakashi's mind flittered between Sakura and Ayame. The longer they had been in this new past and the more he got to know Sakura's daughter, the more intriguing she became. There were parts of Sakura he saw in her, but Ayame was not like her. In fact, Kakashi saw more of Madara in her. There was a coldness in Ayame that Sakura didn't possess, and Kakashi couldn't blame her for it.

The world Sakura grew up in was vastly different from what Ayame did. Sakura's generation was special. They grew up in a time of peace and became a force for change in the world based on their idyllic childhood ideals of what the world was and should be. Ayame grew up in war, just like he had. On that level, he understood her. But there was a lot more to Ayame and Sakura's past than he knew, including what happened to both of her brothers. There was only one passage in Sakura's journals that pertained to her eldest son. He had read it so many times he could recall it with perfect clarity even though the writing was smudged and the page was stained with tears.

_I think you might be the only person in the world who understands what it's like to feel as though everything you are is a failure. I'm sorry to say that, but I can't… Kakashi, I feel as though the end of the world has come and I couldn't do anything to stop it….Kakashi…It's Izara…my Izara…my sweet, beautiful boy….he's gone. Dead. We're in the midst of a war and I can't even think about anyone else. My son has died….If I was a better medic… If only I was someone like Naruto who can overcome anything… I've always been lacking, lacking as a shinobi, as a medic, a lover. I couldn't save Itachi, and now I've failed again as a mother…._

It was the only passage in which she mentioned any of her children by name. She rarely wrote about them, protecting them, Kakashi guessed. Reading it broke his heart, and after that, the entries became lesser and more evasive. Like she couldn't or wouldn't record some things. He desperately wanted to ask Ayame about her, or anyone that was her friend, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't find someone willing to speak about her more than the basic ' _she was a great medic and leader in the village, kind and compassionate, beautiful and intelligent, strong and terrifying. Someone to admire.'_ There was no denying that there was some kind of damn gag order on Sakura, Madara and her family and it frustrated him to no end.

They reached Hokage Tower and seeing the look on Minato's face made many open mouths close and everyone moved out of their way. This was a side of Minato rarely seen, maybe a side that had never been seen before. Even Kakashi couldn't remember a time where he'd seen his sensei in a cold rage like this, and he didn't know exactly what it was he was so furious about.

The Hokage called them into his office and his greeting was cut short when he saw the look on Minato's face. Rin glanced at their sensei nervously and edged closer to Obito. The Hokage signaled for everyone, including ANBU to leave the room and when they were alone, he activated the privacy seals.

"What happened?" He asked seriously.

"Both missions were successful," Obito reported quickly.

There was visible relief on the Hokage's face but his eyes didn't leave Minato.

"I expect you received a report from Hamaki," Minato said tightly.

"Not yet," the Hokage replied.

Minato swallowed.

"The threat was removed."

Kakashi glanced at Minato, curious that he didn't report exactly what had happened. It wasn't as if they didn't know what his mission had been.

"So what is it that you need to discuss?"

"Ryuu Uchiha."

Minato said his name quietly and the Hokage stilled for a moment and then closed his eyes, looking tired.

"I expect he revealed himself to you then?"

The Hokage leaned back in his chair slightly and gave a small sigh.

"How unexpected and troublesome," he murmured.

Minato's anger was rolling off him in waves.

"Calm yourself, Minato," the Hokage ordered sharply, opening his eyes and giving him a hard look. "Tell me what happened."

Obito stepped forward.

"I thought I felt something watching us when we rescued Rin," he started.

Kakashi looked at him in surprise, as did Rin. Minato seemed to be listening, but attempting to reign in his emotions at the same time.

"Rescued Rin?" The Hokage glanced at her.

She flushed.

"After we parted with Minato-sensei on the way to the bridge I was captured by Iwa-nin and placed under a genjutsu. They attempted to extract the mission details from me. I didn't give them anything," she said in a strong voice.

"They're all dead now anyway," Kakashi added.

The Hokage took a deep breath.

"I expect this will all be in the report," he said. "And you will have your mind cleared by the Yamanaka," he said pointedly at Rin.

"Yes, Lord Hokage."

She bowed her head, acquiescing to his demand and he turned his gaze back to Obito.

"Continue, Obito."

Obito glanced at Minato, who was kept quiet, staring at the Hokage with a blank face.

"I felt something, but I didn't know what it was. It was just fleeting feeling, and I dismissed it. But then after we fought the squad of Iwa-nin I felt it again, and it was him."

"What did he look like?"

"He looked like Madara," Kakashi replied, clenching his jaw. "And like Ayame."

The Hokage didn't react to that.

"How old was he?"

Kakashi narrowed his eyes. The Hokage obviously knew a lot more about this than he was letting on, by the small twitch in Minato's hand, Kakashi assumed Minato was thinking the same thing as him.

"He looked about nine," Rin replied quietly.

"What did he say?"

"He told us that he was Ayame's brother. He seems to have some kind of plan he wanted to carry out, but said doesn't have a grudge against the Leaf itself," Obito said.

"We asked him what he wanted and why he was talking to us, and he said that it was self-satisfaction and making sure Ayame didn't have secrets," Rin added.

The Hokage looked back to Minato and then closed his eyes thoughtfully.

"Lord Hokage," Minato's voice was tight and controlled. "It's time to explain what you know about Ryuu and Ayame Uchiha. We are all aware that for whatever reason, we are also involved in whatever is happening."

The Hokage was silent for a moment and then he stood and walked the short distance to his window, looking out at the Hokage Monument with his hands behind his back.

"You may be surprised, but even I am not aware of the full circumstances behind Ryuu and Ayame Uchiha. The only person who knows the full truth is Ayame herself, and she does not seem inclined to share."

His shoulders rose and fell with his breath.

"Ryuu Uchiha is the youngest child of Madara Uchiha and Sakura Nara, and the twin brother of Ayame. They have always been exceptional shinobi. I recall Lord Second complaining about Madara and Sakura, fondly mind you, that of course, two monsters like them would have children who were prodigies before they could walk."

Kakashi, Obito, and Rin all shared wide-eyed glances at each other.

"The two of them were inseparable. Perhaps you can't see it now, but Ayame used to be just like her mother when she was young, as did Ryuu. They were incredibly intelligent and seemed aloof to strangers, but when you spoke to them, they proved to be warm, happy and kind children. Likely due to their brother's influence."

"What happened to him?" Kakashi asked quietly and desperately curious.

The Hokage turned back to them.

"He was born with underdeveloped organs and was therefore ill his entire life, unable to be cured due to various complications. Lady Sakura almost killed herself looking for an answer. He was very smart and the three of them adored each other." He let out a heavy sigh. "I couldn't say for sure, but I think things started to go wrong from when Izara died. Neither Ryuu or Ayame was the same after he was gone, but no one noticed for a long time since Lord First had died only a few months earlier and we were a village at war."

The Hokage sat back in his chair.

"Before his untimely death, Lord Second and Lady Sakura passed on a mission to Ayame that she has carried for more than three-quarters of her life. I do not know the exact details, and since it is a mission from the Second Hokage, I cannot overrule it. But I expect that it is to put an end to her brother."

"Why is she so secretive?" Minato asked with frustration, running his hand through his hair.

The Hokage rested his gaze on Minato for a time before he took his pipe from its holder on his desk and lit it.

"That is simple," the Hokage replied. "Ayame Uchiha does not want to burden anyone else with what she believes is her own duty and fault. She may be a difficult person to handle, however, everything she does is in an effort to protect the Leaf. But do not mistake me, Ayame's priority is the Leaf and not to serve the Hokage."

"What do you mean?" Minato asked.

He gave a tight smile.

"She is the most insubordinate of all my shinobi, she carries out her own will more times than not, and if she believed that I was corrupt, undeserving, or doing wrong by the village, she would not hesitate to kill me."

Kakashi swallowed.

"Then how can you trust her?" Minato questioned. "She withholds intel, she is combative and you have just admitted that she would kill you without a second thought."

The Hokage gave a tight smile.

"One day, perhaps, you might understand why that is the very reason I do trust her."

Minato looked exasperated and angry.

"What about Ryuu," Obito interrupted. "He said this, just before he turned to ash, ' _when one war ends, another begins_.'"

The Hokage seemed to recognise the words.

"Two years ago, on the final day of the chunin exams, Ryuu Uchiha infiltrated the Leaf and posed as an Uchiha orphan, spending time playing with Itachi Uchiha."

Everyone flinched in surprise.

"At that time, Ayame, Tsunade, and Nawaki were investigating a possible partner of Ryuu's. They confirmed it that same day. Whether it was a coincidence or not, I couldn't say. But Ayame met with the shadow clone of Ryuu, and he spoke those same words to her."

"You believe he is waiting for the end of this shinobi war before he makes his move against the Leaf?" Minato questioned.

"I do." The Hokage nodded. "I also think that his target is less the village and more specific people, although that is mere speculation on my part."

Kakashi knew the look in the old man's eye was one of careful consideration, and he definitely suspected that they were all somehow involved in all of this.

"For now, I will thank you for your efforts in the war and await your reports. Do not speak of this to anyone, are we clear?"

There was a tense silence.

"Yes, Lord Hokage," Minato nodded eventually, though it was clear he didn't want to agree.

The Hokage sighed.

"I don't know what she intends to do, but I do trust she'll inform me of this in time. I'm old and tired, and I expect that she feels the same, even though she doesn't look it. If Ryuu has somehow managed to find a way to clone himself into a younger body, I don't know if Ayame will be able to handle this alone."

His words sounded like the musings of a man in thought, but Kakashi knew they were something of a forewarning. Ayame was getting old. Ryuu, apparently, was not.

"Dismissed."

They all gave a bow and went to leave.

"Kakashi, remain her a moment longer if you would."

Kakashi glanced back at the Hokage and Obito and Rin gave little nods to him. Minato was already gone. Kakashi closed the door behind him and turned back to the Hokage.

"I believe you were interested in Sakura Uchiha for a time," the Hokage said.

Kakashi nodded.

"Are you still?"

Kakashi nodded again.

"Then perhaps the greenhouses at the hospital will provide you with some answers."

Kakashi frowned, but the Hokage didn't elaborate.

"I expect a thorough report of your mission on my desk by the evening, Kakashi. Do not be late, this mission could change the trajectory of this war," the Hokage said seriously.

"Yes, Lord Hokage," Kakashi replied, knowing he was being dismissed.

Rin and Obito had waited for him outside the office. They all fell into step together as they walked down to the village.

"So what did the Hokage want?" Obito asked him.

"Nothing, really," Kakashi answered. "Just warning me not to be late with my report."

Rin raised an eyebrow.

"You won't be, will you?"

Kakashi grinned.

"Who, me?"

She rolled her eyes.

"Are you hungry?" She asked them.

"Where's sensei?" Kakashi questioned.

Rin and Obito shared a glance.

"Off to see Ayame no doubt," Obito murmured. "I think I'll avoid the compound for a while. So how about we get some food?"

Kakashi thought about what the Hokage had said and declined the offer. He had some snooping around to do instead.

* * *

Ayame paused on the step of her house, her foot hovering over the stair before she pulled her leg back and stood on the verandah, looking at a very serious, very angry Minato Namikaze. It was incredible how much blue eyes managed to blaze when ignited. Surprisingly, she did feel a sliver of fear at seeing him there, and at the way he looked at her.

"You're very intimidating when you want to be," she commented dryly.

Minato's lips twitched, but not in amusement, more like he was holding back a snarl. She waited for him to speak, knowing it was likely going to be important and worth listening too. Minato was rarely mad.

"Ryuu Uchiha."

Ayame flinched, completely taken aback by the suddenness of hearing her brothers name on Minato's lips.

"Your brother introduced himself to us during our mission."

His voice was reverberating with restrained anger. Ayame controlled herself, standing lackadaisical as she listened. He must have just returned from the mission, considered his slightly disheveled appearance.

"And?" She questioned.

Minato looked enraged.

"And?" He growled. "That's  _enough,_  Ayame. It's time you start to tell the damn truth."

Ayame took a breath and raised an eyebrow.

"You're so attractive when you're mad," she said flatly.

She rolled her eyes when his expression turned from rage to cold anger.

"What do you want me to say?" She asked. "The details of my mission are above the level of the Hokage. You are  _not_  the Hokage, and despite your involvement in this entire twisted reality, I don't have to tell you anything I don't want to."

"He called you predictable."

Ayame stiffened.

"He said that you wouldn't tell us the real truth."

She narrowed her eyes.

"So what is it you want to know?" She asked, annoyed. "My brother is alive. He's crazy. He's somehow become a child again. He wants to destroy the world. He hates Kakashi, he's going to kill you and everyone else if I don't stop him."

Minato was standing in front of her quicker than she could blink. He leaned over her.

"If you do anything that threatens their safety, I will not hesitate to put a stop to you," he said in a low voice. "No matter who you are."

A slow smile spread over Ayame's face.

"My, my, Minato. How very convincing of you."

She pressed the blade of her kunai deeper into his stomach.

"But never forget that your speed means nothing against me, and I will  _never_  allow my brother to touch a hair on their heads. Or  _yours."_

Minato narrowed his eyes, searching hers for a lie, but she knew he wouldn't find it. She was being entirely truthful. He stepped back, and she put her kunai away. He let out a tired sigh.

"Why hide it?" He asked her. "Why not just tell the truth from the beginning?"

"Because there was nothing to be done," she answered. "They're just children to the world. How could the knowledge have helped them? Not to mention that you'd have been distracted from the war, and the Leaf needs you - something even someone as modest as you are more than aware of."

Minato looked at her wryly.

"You have a twisted sense of kindness."

Ayame snorted.

"Kindness is not what I'd call it."

"Will you tell me about him so I can prepare?" He asked.

She shook her head.

"Not yet, but within the year, I believe, the day will come when I tell you everything."

Minato looked irritated by her response but nodded. He turned to leave but then he stopped and looked back at her. She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Is there substance to the rumours that Hanzo the Salamander is no more?"

"Why are you asking me?"

He gave her a searching look and then shook his head. Before he could say anything else, she decided to give him something to think about, something that he could consider when he eventually took the title he was destined for.

"I am not the only shinobi in our village who acts without the Hokage's knowledge and approval, but the difference between me and that person is that I don't have a gaggle of mindless followers and do things that benefit me personally."

Minato's eyes narrowed. Ayame walked down the stairs and fell into step beside Minato and they walked slowly from the courtyard to the front gate.

"I'm not the only one who has traveled to Ame."

"Then who else was there?" Minato asked.

Ayame bit the inside of her cheek. It was too early for Minato to know that specific detail yet. He sighed with annoyance.

"Good-bye then, Ayame."

He turned and stalked away. Ayame watched him go with a heavy heart and frowned. Ryuu was always making things so damn complicated.

* * *

Kakashi wandered around the first greenhouse absently. He'd never been inside them before, he'd never had the need to. He wasn't a medic-nin, first of all, so he technically wasn't even supposed to be in them to begin with. But nonetheless, breaking into a greenhouse to search for clues about Sakura wasn't the worst or hardest thing he'd ever done. He walked along the narrow corridor to the end of the greenhouse and rounded the corner to see an old man hunched over a desk, scribbling something down on a sheet of paper. Kakashi paused, wondering if he should quietly back away, or say something.

"Sit down."

The old man spoke suddenly without looking up from his paper and continued writing. Kakashi wondered if he was talking to him or not. He looked around.

"You're the only one here, kid. Take a seat."

The old man sounded grumpy, and Kakashi immediately sat on the chair opposite the man.

"How'd you know I was there?" He asked curiously.

The man looked somewhat familiar. Grey hair that, by the looks of it, used to be black. Wrinkled skin, dark eyes, and Kakashi noted that his hands and wrists seemed to have old scars on them that looked like burns.

"Pah," the man let out a derisive laugh. "You young folk are all the same, think you're the bee's knees. I might be an old man, but I'm a shinobi and I was trained by Lady Sakura and Lord Madara."

Kakashi blinked in surprise.

"You were trained by Sakura  _and_  Madara?" He asked.

The man finally looked up from his paper and peered at Kakashi.

"What's it to you?"

Kakashi glanced around the greenhouse.

"Have you…always been in the greenhouse?"

The man narrowed his eyes.

"Hn. You think it's an inferior place for a shinobi, do you?" Shouta questioned, his tone irate. "I'll have you know Lady Sakura commissioned these greenhouses and we put them together ourselves. If Lady Sakura is inferior in your eyes, you've got some issues,  _boy."_

He turned back to his papers and began writing again. Kakashi felt like he'd done something wrong. He was sure that this man was the reason the Hokage told him to come here.

"I don't think Sakura is inferior," Kakashi quickly tried to correct himself. "I was just curious about you. The greenhouses are very well kept."

The old man took a breath and muttered something that Kakashi didn't understand.

"Uh. I'm looking for something," Kakashi said. "Can you help me?"

The man's pen paused and he looked up at Kakashi with impatience.

"Be more specific and stop wasting my time, Kakashi Hatake."

Kakashi frowned.

"How did you know my name?"

The man gave a sly smile.

"I don't think that's the question you want to ask."

"Who are you?"

"Try again."

Kakashi leaned back in his chair and folded his arms over his chest, staring at the man. He did look somewhat familiar, and then realised where he'd seen the man before. He'd seen him in the hospital with Obito and Rin when Itachi was born. His name was….Shouta Uchiha. Kakashi took a deep breath and closed his eyes, considering.

"Was she happy?"

He cracked them opened them and saw Shouta smiling.

"I've been waiting for you, kid," he said. "What the heck took you so long?"

Kakashi gave a startled laugh.

"I don't know," he replied honestly, lowering his arms.

Shouta shook his head.

"Lady Sakura did say you were always late."

Kakashi swallowed thickly at the words.

"So you did know her then? You really were her student, and you…you know everything?" He asked nervously.

Shouta gave him a look.

"I thought you were supposed to be smart."

He picked up his pen and began writing again. Kakashi waited for him to speak, but the longer the silence dragged on, he realised that Shouta wasn't going to talk.

"Just, please, can you tell me about Sakura?" Kakashi begged.

Shouta let out a long sigh and put his pen down.

"Be specific. I'm busy with the greenhouses."

"When - when did you meet her?" Kakashi rushed.

Finally, finally, he was getting someone to talk to him. He could barely contain himself.

"It'd be about… maybe a year and a half after the village was established," Shouta answered thoughtfully. He looked at Kakashi with a frown. "You know what happened to her?"

"The…coma?"

Shouta nodded briefly.

"She was in a bad way that first year after she woke up," Shouta said. "Hika and I were worried about her all the time."

"Hika?"

"My wife. She was Lady Sakura's first student, practically begged Sakura to be her sensei," Shouta had a wistful smile on his face. "We were both lucky she was there, you see. Hika and I both had our own reasons why we were outcasts in our clans."

"Sakura was always a welcoming person," Kakashi said quietly.

"She was happy," Shouta said. "She told me stories about you before she told me the truth. It was a bit confusing, but when she eventually told me the truth about herself she looked so relieved."

Kakashi smiled a little under his mask, his throat constricting slightly. Shouta cleared his throat.

"She was happy with Lord Madara as well," he said. "The two of them were very well suited."

Kakashi nodded, though he found it hard the relationship hard to imagine.

"You're not just here about Lady Sakura though, are you?" Shouta's voice was meaningful. "You've met her daughter, and now you want to know about her sons."

Kakashi looked at him.

"Well, yes, but - "

Shouta shook his head.

"You're going to need to be prepared to face him, Kakashi. He's not someone that you can save, no matter what Lady Sakura hoped for. Ryuu is long past saving."

"What did he do?"

Shouta shook his head again, and Kakashi knew he wasn't going to tell him. Whatever had happened was enough that people didn't want to talk about it.

"He was never the same after Izara died." Shouta sighed. "He was a good kid, considerate and pleasing but… The Uchiha clan has a tendency to extremes, and extreme is where he went. When that sensei of yours is the Hokage, she'll tell you."

Kakashi sat up in surprise.

"What?"

Shouta nodded.

"You heard me, kid. Not much longer to wait is there? The war is going to end and the Fourth will be named and then she'll tell you everything, so just be patient a little longer and get ready because Hashirama and Madara were Gods of Shinobi, but Ryuu…"

"He's strong?"

Shouta gave him a pitying look and Kakashi swallowed.

"I hope you never have to find out just how much of a monster he can be."

* * *

Kakashi, Rin, and Obito met at Obito's house and walked quietly through the Uchiha District to Ayame's. They had seen Minato earlier in the day, who told them not to bother talking to her. He'd seen her after the mission and gotten what he could out of her. But Obito was sure there were things she'd tell them but not Minato, so they went to find and talk to her anyway. She'd been expecting them and was waiting for them at the gate. She led them quietly through her house into a room where Obito sensed numerous, various seals activate when the entered. She lounged on the couch across from them, while Rin and Kakashi sat on the smaller couch and Obito stood beside them. Obito didn't like the atmosphere around her, she looked ready to snap.

"You should have told us about your brother."

Kakashi folded his arms over his chest and glared at Ayame, who narrowed her eyes back at him.

"Should I have?" She replied, her voice emotionless.

"Yes," Rin answered firmly. "You should have. You didn't consider how this would affect Kakashi, did you?"

"Rin, that's not - " Kakashi looked at Rin slightly panicked.

Ayame's eyes narrowed further.

"It must have been so hard on Sakura to come back in time and make a life of her own, but it hasn't been easy for Kakashi either! Sakura was his student, he loved her and he knew her. If it was her son that caused so much hurt, he should have been told about it!"

Obito swallowed, knowing that Rin was only trying to protect Kakashi, but that everything she just said was going to be blown back into her face by Ayame.

"Oh, I know all about Kakashi and his troubles," Ayame spat.

Rin flinched at her tone and Kakashi leaned away slightly.

"Oh, poor, _poor_  Kakashi whose daddy did something right and wrong and killed himself because of it. Poor,  _poor_  Kakashi whose head was so far up his ass that he caused the death of the three people most important to him."

They all flinched, but Ayame wasn't finished.

" _Poor, genius Kakashi_  who was always the best at everything and blamed himself for everything that went wrong," she sneered. "Poor, poor Kakashi who was never far enough from my mother's mind not to compare her own children too. Who is the reason my mother is  _dead._  Forgive me if I didn't consider your  _poor Kakashi's_  feelings enough for you."

Obito put his hand on Rin's shoulder, feeling it tremble slightly.

"Is that why he hates me?" Kakashi asked quietly.

Ayame leaned back, her lips twisted with distaste.

"Partly, I suppose," she replied. "I couldn't say exactly. Ryuu's always been a little selfish, and despite how much our mother loved us, she still considered you in all her actions as much as she did us."

Ayame looked away and Obito glanced at Kakashi, who looked lost and uncertain.

"I don't share his feelings, in case you're wondering," Ayame said, turning back to look at Kakashi. "But I do understand them."

Kakashi breathed deeply and Obito saw his friend's jaw tighten as he nodded.

Ayame turned to Rin, who flinched under her hard gaze.

"Don't speak of things you're ignorant about," she snapped. "You attack me for not considering Kakashi's feelings, but you think it's been so easy for me? He's my brother, my  _twin,_  my blood."

"I - I'm sorry," Rin squeaked out.

Ayame scoffed with disgust.

"Ayame, leave her alone," Obito said with a frown. "Just tell us what you didn't tell Minato."

She raised an eyebrow.

"What makes you think I didn't tell him everything?"

Obito rolled his eyes.

"Because Ryuu was right about one thing, you keep secrets," he answered.

Her lips curled in a mean smile.

"I told him that you're children who didn't need to know anything, and I'll tell you the same thing. What do you think you can do now, or back when we met? Ryuu is more powerful than you know, and now that he's body-swapping he's going to be close to unbeatable. What are three brats like you going to do when you're under the Hokage's thumb? Do you want to abandon your village in the middle of a war?"

When they kept silent, she shook her head.

"I didn't think so. By the Sage, you're irritating me. So many damn questions," she muttered. "What do you want?" She demanded of them. "You want to hunt down Ryuu? I've been trying to do that for thirty years. You want to know what he did, why he turned against our family, why he left the village?"

"Yes!" Obito burst out angrily. "We want to know what the hell happened to you, to Sakura, to Madara, to the village.  _What happened_?"

Ayame took a deep breath and looked at him.

"The same thing that happened to you," she answered. "Someone he loved died and he never recovered from it."

Obito slipped his hand off Rin's shoulder and swallowed, shaking his head. Kakashi stood.

"Let's go." He pulled Rin to her feet. "She's not going to tell us anything."

Obito stared Ayame, who watched them make their way to the door silently.

"The Fourth Hokage," she said suddenly. They all paused and looked back. "When he's the Fourth and when Jiraiya's back... Just… wait a little longer."

Obito and Kakashi glanced at each other, and Rin tugged on Obito's sleeve. He looked back at Ayame, who was sitting with one leg tucked under her and her chin resting on her other knee, looking away from them.

"The day he takes office, whether or not Jiraiya is there."

He could just see her cheek twitch from the smile.

"Of course," she murmured. "If you all survive the war, that is."

* * *

Mikoto gave Obito and Kakashi grateful smiles when she opened the door to her house.

"Come in, boys," she said, stepping aside to let them in. "Itachi has been a little restless today, so I'm glad you're here."

"No problems, Mikoto," Obito grinned. "We're here to serve."

Kakashi snorted.

"You're only here for the free food," he muttered.

Mikoto giggled.

"Well, there's plenty of that. I've just prepared some snacks for you both."

"You're the best, Mikoto!"

Obito gave her a tight hug, which Mikoto seemed happy and surprised by. He released her and went straight for the kitchen and Kakashi sighed.

"Thank you both for coming over," Mikoto said to him. "It's been quite a while since I last had lunch with Kushina."

Kakashi shrugged.

"No problems. The Hokage has given us a little break after our last mission, but Minato-sensei has been sent out again already, so Kushina's a bit worried," Kakashi said.

Mikoto gave a tight smile.

"I understand how she feels," she murmured.

Fugaku was also out in the field, sent as one of the commanders of the front lines against Kumo, who was trying to infiltrate the Land of Fire since Iwa had retreated. Mikoto turned her smile brighter after her moment of worry.

"Itachi's been looking forward to seeing you two all day, even if he doesn't admit it," she laughed. "He's always in such a good mood after you've spent time with him." She hesitated a moment. "Itachi's a little… well, you know what he's like, so thank you for taking him out into the world a little with people more often. I worry he's alone too much."

Kakashi nodded, understanding what she was saying. Mikoto, aware of how to deal with those who spoke less than others, simply smiled at Kakashi and ushered him inside instead of pressing for more of a response like Kushina would. She left them minutes later after she'd collected her things, and Obito and Kakashi were alone with Itachi staring at them both.

At four years old, Itachi was a quiet little boy. His dark hair was down to his jaw, his eyes were wide and dark, his expression inquisitive and serious. Kakashi had seen him alone a lot, lost in his thoughts. When Itachi wasn't around Obito, who had been a regular caretaker of him since he was a baby, Itachi was a lot more withdrawn from society. It was no wonder that Danzo had been able to get his claws into Itachi's head, the kid was constantly thinking and considering and being pulled and drawn in all different directions.

"What's with that look, little Uchiha?" Obito jutted out his jaw and folded his arms over his chest. "You got a problem with me?"

Itachi wrinkled his nose slightly.

"You're weird," he stated.

Kakashi stifled his laugh unsuccessfully. Obito put his hands on his hips and gave Itachi a playful glare.

"You're the weird one," he said, sticking out his tongue.

Itachi tilted his head to the side.

"Why didn't you become a jonin like Kakashi?" Itachi asked.

Obito blinked and straightened, surprised by the question. He looked at Kakashi.

"Why do you ask?" Kakashi asked Itachi.

"I heard father talking about it with mother. He was confused," Itachi replied. "Did you do something stupid again?"

Obito spluttered at that.

"Excuse me, baby Uchiha - " Itachi frowned at the term, " - I am  _definitely_  jonin level, I just didn't get promoted because of other reasons."

"What reasons?" Itachi asked.

"You're super curious about me! You do care!"

Itachi ducked his head.

"Don't get all shy, Ita!" Obito ruffled Itachi's hair playfully, and Itachi sidestepped out of his touch and smoothed out his hair with a scowl. "I'll let you in on a secret, okay?"

Itachi looked dubious but nodded.

"I was going to be promoted, but my sensei decided to hold me back because there are some bad people - " Kakashi cleared his throat and frowned, Obito ignored him, " - who might pay a little too much attention to me if I was promoted so young. Understand?"

Itachi glanced between the two of them for a moment before he nodded.

"So what do you want to do today?" Obito asked Itachi, satisfied.

"Train."

Kakashi raised a skeptical eyebrow.

"Is that what you really want to do?" He asked pointedly.

Itachi swallowed and looked away. Obito grinned at Kakashi, who smiled back. Kakashi supposed they'd have to wait until he grew up to find out how much of Itachi was different and the same as before but for now, Itachi was, in a word, adorable. Kakashi planned to enjoy every minute of his adorable youth before he was inevitably forced into growing up too quickly.

"Come on, let's go steal Shisui from the academy and get some dango," he declared.

Itachi frowned.

"You shouldn't interrupt the academy students. You're a bad influence."

But he had a sparkle in his eyes and when Obito offered to carry him on his back, Itachi climbed up without a fuss.

"Come on, let's go break out our cousin, eh?"

"If we must," Itachi mumbled happily, ducking his head into the mess of Obito's hair to hide his face.

On the way to the academy and at the request of Itachi, Obito regaled him with glossed over details of their recent Kannabi Bridge mission. Itachi questioned what it was like fighting with the Sharingan, a look of longing on his face.

"Look like someone's a little jealous," Kakashi teased him.

Itachi looked away, and Kakashi saw a look of pain cross Obito's features for a second before it passed and wondered if Itachi's Sharingan was one of the things Obito hadn't spoken about yet.

"Don't be in such a rush to grow up," Obito said with a smile. "You know, if you're awesome without your Sharingan, how much more awesome will you be once you get it? Ever think about it like that?"

"I guess," Itachi mumbled, disappointed.

"We're here," Obito announced.

"I think you two ought to stay hidden for a moment," Kakashi said. "Don't want Fugaku to kill us when he comes back if Itachi gets caught."

"Good plan," Obito nodded.

Itachi climbed down from Obito's back and stood beside him whilst Kakashi entered the academy and thought of how to get Shisui out. He knew where the kid's classroom was, and he hoped that as soon as he created his distraction, Shisui would understand what was happening. Kakashi walked into the front door of the academy without any trouble since the classes were in session and no one was walking the halls. He considered how best to break Shisui out and ducked into a darkened corner of the hallway to transform into his chosen henge. Probably he would end up in a whole lot of trouble for this, but he knew it would be worth it. Kakashi burst the door to Shisui's classroom open. The sensei looked irritated and annoyed until he saw the person Kakashi had transformed into and spluttered in shock.

"L-lord Hokage! What - What are you doing here?"

Kakashi almost felt bad, but he was enjoying himself too much.

"Shisui Uchiha," Kakashi thundered.

He saw Shisui freeze, terrified.

"Come with me."

Everyone in the class looked like they had been turned to stone, and gave the petrified Shisui pitying looks.

"Shisui, you heard the Hokage."

The sensei looked like he wanted to protect Shisui, but was torn. Shisui hastily got to his feet and followed Kakashi out of the classroom. Kakashi slammed the door behind him, causing everyone to flinch, including Shisui.

"Lord Hokage, am I in trouble?" Shisui's voice trembled.

Kakashi glanced down the hall both ways and then gave him a grin and undid the transformation. Shisui's eyes almost bugged out of his head until he burst out laughing with shock and delight, and Kakashi grinned beneath his mask.

"Oh you're in trouble all right," Kakashi replied. "Let's get out of here. Itachi and Obito are waiting."

Just as they were walking out towards the door, Shisui's sensei poked his head out the classroom and saw Kakashi with Shisui, and shouted something before the pair ran off.

"You're going to be in so much trouble!" Shisui giggled and whispered.

Kakashi shrugged.

"Ah, well. Lord Third loves me."

"Really?"

"I hope so."

* * *

Kakashi found Might Guy alone on a training field, fighting ferociously against a wooden post. He didn't say anything. He sat some distance behind Guy and waited for him to exhaust himself. Knowing it was going to take a while, he pulled out his book and made himself comfortable. The sun had set, the stars were shining brightly and midnight had come and gone before Guy finally collapsed. Kakashi had abandoned his book some hours before when he noticed Guy's movements were becoming slower and less controlled. His endurance was certainly something to envy, but in this situation, Kakashi couldn't feel anything other than concern for his friend. Guy had passed out, and Kakashi stood over him with a small grimace and hands on his hips. He wasn't going to allow Guy to get sick out in the cold night air. He summoned all his strength and pulled Guy onto his back. Kakashi hadn't walked far before Guy stirred.

"How did you do it?" He murmured, his voice hoarse.

Kakashi knew what Guy was talking about without him having to say anything. He stayed quiet for a moment before he answered.

"You're not like me, Guy," he answered quietly. "So I can't answer that question in a way that will help you."

Guy remained uncharacteristically subdued and stayed on Kakashi's back.

"But," Kakashi said hesitantly. "Father's are…irreplaceable," he said with sadness in his voice. "My father was vilified for following his heart. Your father sacrificed himself for you and your teammates. Both of them were incredible, don't you think? The only way to move forward is to live the best we can and follow their examples."

Guy settled comfortably on Kakashi, who felt his friend's body relax slightly and then heard the sniffles from Guy.

"How… youthful," he sniffed.

Kakashi gave a small smile under his mask.

"Thanks, Kakashi."

Kakashi continued carrying Guy back to his apartment - not Guy's empty house. He knew all too well what it was like to go home to a house with death following you. Guy's father might not have committed suicide in their home like Sakumo, but Guy had been forced to abandon him on the field of battle and that would forever follow Guy. At least for tonight, he wouldn't be alone. Kakashi hummed, thinking of a way to give Guy a little boost.

"Say, just because you're suffering, don't think I'll go easy on you for our next challenge," Kakashi said.

Guy was quiet for a moment and then he chuckled.

"I'll challenge you…to a battle of who can fall asleep the fastest."

Kakashi lost the challenge before he even reached his front door, and it was the only challenge he'd ever be glad to lose.


	15. Part Three: Kannabi Bridge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PART FOUR: THE FOURTH HOKAGE coming up in the next chapter.
> 
> about Kakashi and Sakura's relationship:  
> \- Kakashi and Sakura were only ever as canon: student-teacher.  
> \- The Sacrifices Universe is a Non-Massacre time-travel AU. It began with Sakura and Itachi at the end of the Fourth Shinobi War, where they are sent back to the Warring State Era. Itachi and Sakura fall in love during the FIRST story (Sacrifices For Peace), during SFP, Madara also falls in love with Sakura. At the end of SFP, Itachi dies and Sakura is broken-hearted.  
> \- In Sacrifice and Surrender, the SECOND story, Sakura slowly recovers from her grief over Itachi and falls in love with Madara and they get married and have children.  
> \- Willing Sacrifices (this story) is the THIRD story.
> 
> Basically, Sakura has her struggles with being back in time and uses Kakashi, Sasuke and Naruto (and Ino) as anchor points for her to cope. Since she is told that Kakashi will also come back in time at some point, she focuses more on him - writing journals, remembering him. She loved Kakashi, but only platonically as a mentor, friend, and comrade. She's not perfect. No one is. She compares her genius kids to the genius she knows.

 

**Chapter 13**

Shikaku Nara sometimes felt that being the only person that Ayame Uchiha trusted implicitly was more of a burden than an honour. She had too many secrets, too many plans that affected too many people.

He'd first learned the secret of his clan when he was a child. Of course, he hadn't believed it at first, but then he read the Sakura Uchiha's journals, learned how she'd died and waited to see what Sakumo Hatake would name his child. When he investigated the Uchiha clan and found the baby named Obito, he went in search of his great-aunt Ayame and questioned her. Sometimes he wondered what had prompted himself to be so motivated, but there were times when the truth demanded to be known, even when he'd much rather be sleeping.

Four years prior, when whispers about the newly formed and possibly once-in-a-generation Team Minato had started, Shikaku went to watch them spar against Choza's team and needed little else to confirm his suspicions than to carefully observed Kakashi's responses. When Ayame returned to the village soon after, she informed him to keep an eye and ear out, but that getting involved further might put the clan in jeopardy, something there was no need to do. Shikaku was a patient man, and he trusted Ayame. She kept him updated about her investigations on Danzo and Orochimaru, she confided in him her dealings in Amegakure, and he tried to help her track her brother.

Shikaku kept an eye on Minato and the kids discreetly. He spoke with Nawaki Senju about the Hokage's plans, which Nawaki suspected would include retiring at the end of the war. They both knew that it would be Minato that took his place, there was no one else worthy of the title, not with Orochimaru's betrayal - of which Shikaku pretended not to know about.

Shikaku was more than happy to stay in the shadows instead of exposing the depth of his awareness. Observation was more easily accomplished when there wasn't any suspicion attached to you. Danzo was his target. Danzo who had left Konoha on a mysterious mission and injured his eye refused to allow Tsunade to treat him, and instead opted to remain wrapped in bandages. He was not surprised that Ayame stormed into his house, terrifying his wife, and started screaming about how she was going to tear his treacherous head off. It took time for her to calm down, and when she did, he made her a promise that Danzo would be ousted from the village as soon as he could manage it.

After all, no one was safe in the shadows from a Nara.

* * *

War is a desperate beast, and when nations clash there can only be losers. Victor, winner, conqueror, titles earned by bathing in blood and preying on fear and despair. Hiruzen Sarutobi was old and he was tired. He felt every death of a Land of Fire citizen in his slumped shoulders and the ever-increasing heaviness in his chest. The war was in its final, desperate moments. Moments that might last months, and moments that might drag on with consequences that would affect the world for generations to come, but the end drew ever closer and the clawing for some kind of victory and final stand was going to cause devastation that would take years and years to recover from.

There was one clear path open to him, one that he knew his council would be torn about, but one that would bring this war to an end and relieve him of his duties as Hokage. Still, he had his reservations about ending the war, though he knew it was the best path. The sooner the war ended, the sooner the Leaf shinobi could recover, the sooner they'd be ready to face whatever Ryuu Uchiha brought to them.

Team Minato, Ayame, Jiraiya, Orochimaru… He mused over these people who were so involved in something lain over with mystery. He had been grateful that Ayame had considered his position and the village's needs enough to attempt to take care of things herself. She was right that his duty was to the protection of the duty and any distraction would only be detrimental. It didn't mean he hadn't formed his own conclusions, some more outlandish than others.

Still, the war was not yet over. Iwa, however, was not as aggressive as they were before the Yellow Flash decimated an entire battalion of 1,000 shinobi by himself. Minato's notoriety only rose when he faced the famed son of the Raikage and his jinchuuriki brother and escaped without a scratch, apparently having been faster than them both. For the war to end, Minato Namikaze was rarely in the village, having become one of the most effective deterrents for their enemies, who now mostly fled on sight of him. Kakashi Hatake and Obito Uchiha had also established themselves as two of the strongest young shinobi in the village. Rin Nohara was not quite at their level yet, but she had a growing reputation for her toughness and skill as a medic. Hiruzen didn't know nor understand why Minato had been so insistent that Obito's promotion was held back, but the boy was clearly as strong and smart as Kakashi, as surprising as it was considering his clumsy, crybaby personality just a few short years earlier.

Jiraiya and Orochimaru had worked to dismantle the workings of the military within Suna, so much so that they had called for all their external forces to return to their village and effectively surrendered. Ayame had been insistent that Konoha send them a reasonable alliance and trade agreement as soon as possible. All the council had been against it, even Tsunade and Nawaki, still Ayame hadn't backed down.

Considering her history with Suna, Hiruzen wondered what her angle was. His mind was changed when she stated that they needed to look to the future and forge bonds that would lead them all to prosper, and not to linger on the darkness of the past. In those words, he recognised her mother, father, and both the First and Second Hokage, and was moved to agree with her, although he would not send out a messenger until other things were settled.

He heard a knock on his door, and it was opened to reveal Team Kakashi. He raised an eyebrow at Kakashi.

"On time today, Kakashi?" He questioned.

Kakashi shrugged, amusement in his eyes.

"I keep telling you, Lord Hokage, I'm always on time."

Obito and Rin gave him an apologetic smile. He explained the parameters of their mission and was surprised by the slight flinch that Rin gave and the minute widening of Kakashi's eyes. More things he tucked away into his theories about what Ryuu Uchiha wanted. They departed and Hiruzen got to drafting his proposal for an armistice to send to the Tsuchikage sometime in the near future.

* * *

There was no Madara, no Zetsu to plant the idea of kidnapping Rin and implanting the three-tails into her this time around, so the question remained why the Mist-nin were so insistent in capturing them. Kakashi, Obito, and Rin looked at each other with frowns.

"It's probably got something to do with Ryuu," Obito muttered.

"Seems like the only reasonable explanation," Kakashi replied. "I don't think Sakura knew though…" he glanced at Rin.

Rin swallowed.

"It doesn't matter anyway," she said. "They're not going to capture me. Maybe… maybe this is one of those things that the Sage of Six Paths said, you know, how some things will be the same."

Kakashi and Obito looked at each other.

"Possibly," Kakashi answered.

"In either case, if we keep running, we'll just exhaust ourselves," Obito said. "There are… ten following us now." He scrunched his eyes closed in concentration. "And another fifty a few kilometers away."

"Can we… can we do this?" Rin asked nervously. "There's so many."

Obito gave her a grin.

"Let's show 'em what Konoha shinobi are made," he said.

Kakashi sighed.

"Let's go to… that place then," he said. "In the open, it'll be easier to see them coming."

Rin and Obito nodded. That place…it wasn't hard to guess where he meant. The place Rin died. It was closer to the larger group of shinobi, and they would sense the fighting and come investigate. Kakashi pulled off his chakra restraints as he ran, as did Obito. Obito gave Rin a small nod, eyes determined.

"We'll protect you, Rin," he said.

"I know," she smiled. "And I'll protect you both as well."

Kakashi summoned Pakkun, telling him to hurry to find them some back-up and where they'd be.

* * *

Obito closed his eyes and let the world fall away. He could feel the nervousness of Kakashi and Rin and knew that he had pushed it by saying that they could take on sixty Mist-nin. But they didn't have much of a choice. They had rushed to their chosen field of battle and quickly set up some traps that would help them lessen the number of opponents.

Rain fell, and Obito looked up to the heavens. He didn't like the rain, but now he chose to let go and lose himself in the memories of his days as Tobi and Madara, where his heart was closed and his care for life was at its lowest. For them to survive, Obito was going to need to be at his most ruthless, and he would be that, for them, for Kakashi. For Rin.

"Obito."

Kakashi voice was low.

"You don't have to - to close off," he spoke quietly, so Rin wouldn't hear.

Of course, Kakashi understood what was about to happen. Obito narrowed his Sharingan eyes slightly.

"You know that's not true."

Kakashi wanted to argue, he could see the conflict in his eyes.

"Don't worry about me, Bakashi. Just protect Rin, and I'll protect you two."

"I'll drag you back, Obito." 

_Back into the light beside us._

"I know."

Obito glanced to the right.

"They're coming."

Obito Uchiha locked himself away, just for a little while, and in his place was someone like Tobi, who would do anything to get what he wanted, and what he wanted was to protect his friends.

* * *

Kakashi slammed his hands down to the ground and the earth wall rose, protecting him and Rin from the barrage of shuriken that came for them.

"Kakashi! Are you all right?"

Kakashi felt sweat trickle down his brow.

"Fine," he grunted. "Obito?"

"Oh, better than us," Rin panted before somersaulting away from the crumbling earth wall as Mist-nin came for them.

Kakashi cut through the Mist-nin between him and Rin with his lightning-chakra enhanced saber and was at her side again within moments. The Mist-nin were getting more fierce as their numbers dwindled. They'd underestimated the 'kids' from Konoha. Obito was making quick work of them, a little distance away from Rin and Kakashi. His Kamui was useful. Kakashi knew how frustrating it was to fight against someone when your attacks didn't hit and when right through.

Kakashi hated that he wasn't able to help share more of the burden with Obito, but as skilled as Kakashi was, he didn't have the advantage of the Sharingan anymore and was quickly learning to adjust his battle style.

"Don't underestimate the Blood Mist!"

Kakashi could've sighed if he wasn't fighting for his life.

"Don't underestimate Konoha!" Kakashi growled, stabbing his kunai through the man's heart and then ducking to allow Rin to jumped onto his shoulders and use him as a springboard to attack the shinobi behind the Mist-nin Kakashi had just killed.

After their traps had injured and killed two dozen of the shinobi, the three of them cut through their ranks quickly, until there were only three left. Obito was relatively unharmed, only a few nicks and tearing off his clothing. Kakashi had a few cuts and bruise. His jonin jacket had been discarded when a poisoned senbon had luckily been stopped by the padding of his jacket but had begun to corrode at the material. Rin was exhausted but had managed to avoid any lacerations that would have slowed her down further. Obito rejoined them, panting a little.

"I think we should let Ibiki Morino have at them," Obito announced, his tone jovial but face blank in a way that unsettled Kakashi.

The Mist-nin recognised Ibiki's name and flinched. He'd made quite a name for himself over the course of the war, despite his youth. Ibiki was as feared as any of the Konoha interrogators.

"You'll die before you ever capture us," they hissed.

"Nah." Obito's grin stretched over his teeth, which he bared at them. He took a deep breath and then snapped his eyes open. "Kamui!"

Two of the shinobi were sucked into the vortex of his Kamui, and while the third was distracted by his disappearing comrades, Kakashi finished him off with a well-placed shuriken to his neck. When they stood alone on the raining field of battle, Rin fell to her knees, panting hard.

"I thought Pakkun was going to come with back-up," she breathed harshly.

Obito, who was looking over the battlefield, turned away from the carnage and reached down a hand to help her to her feet.

"He's Kakashi's dog, what do you expect, of course, he's late," he answered, trying to joke.

"Don't say bad things about my dogs," Kakashi frowned at him.

He looked around and swallowed.

"We're going to get in the bingo books for this," he murmured.

Obito shrugged.

"Then we'll just have to train harder," he responded.

Kakashi was about to retort, but he saw Obito tense and immediately his stomach clenched.

"What is it?"

Obito whipped around.

"Ryuu."

Kakashi and Rin immediately went on the defence, turning to where Obito was looking. From the trees at the edge of the rocky area they'd been fighting in, Ryuu Uchiha walked out, Kakashi noted with worry that he was in a younger and smaller body than before. His mind whirled with questions about what Ryuu's powers were and how it was possible he was doing this.

"How many bodies does he have?" Rin breathed.

Ryuu clapped slowly, a broad smile appearing across his face.

"That was a  _magnificent_  performance," he said in a congratulatory tone.

"What are you doing here?" Obito asked coldly.

Ryuu looked at him, amused by his tone.

"Just wanted to know something…"

Ryuu trailed off, kicking one of the dead Mist-nin away from him in disgust. Obito took a protective half-a-step forwards in front of Kakashi and Rin. Kakashi kept his eyes on Ryuu, who was still looking down. He clenched his jaw, feeling dread curl in his gut. Ryuu looked back at them, his eyes were red and black, and he was smiling. He locked eyes with Obito and Kakashi's eyes widened when he saw Obito's hand twitch and body tense.

"Rin, genjutsu!" Kakashi shouted.

Rin and Kakashi both laid their hands on Obito's arms and pushed their chakra into Obito, but it somehow was flung back inside them, and both Kakashi and Rin cried out in pain and shock, stumbling away from Obito. Kakashi hissed as his hands stung and looked at the chakra burns on his hands with shock, and then he looked up at Ryuu.

"Don't interrupt me," Ryuu said in a low, menacing voice.

Kakashi scrambled to his feet, kunai withdrawn, ready to launch an attack until Rin and Obito both suddenly cried out in pain. He looked between them and Ryuu, who was looking satisfied, annoyed and wearied.

"Not everything I wanted, but enough," he muttered.

"What did you do?" Kakashi demanded.

Ryuu raised a finger, pointing at Rin, and gave Kakashi one last smile.

"You might not have killed her today, but if you don't hurry, I will."

Kakashi's eyes widened and he sprinted to Rin, who was clutching her chest and writhing in pain.

Behind him, Ryuu had disappeared, but Kakashi didn't care about him anymore, all he saw were Obito and Rin - crushed under a rock, his hand through her chest,  _dead, dead, dead…_

"Rin? Rin, what is it?" Kakashi asked desperately, rushing to her side, looking over her helplessly.

"My… my chakra," she gasped. "He did something to my chakra!"

She let out a cry of pain and convulsed. Kakashi's breath came quick and panicked and he looked at Obito, who was wincing on his hands and knees.

"They're…coming," he said. "The back-up."

"Obito, are you okay?" Kakashi asked, his voice rising in pitch.

Obito swallowed and nodded.

"Genjutsu," he breathed. "Powerful. He… was in my head, Kakashi. My memories."

"I thought you sealed them." Kakashi's eyes widened.

"He got through," Obito said weakly. "We have to get Rin out of here." He pushed himself to his feet. "He - he has some control over chakra or something. We have to get her to Tsunade."

Kakashi nodded and scooped Rin into his arms. Her body trembled and shook in pain.

"We'll get you help, Rin," Kakashi whispered. "You'll be okay."

_You have to be. Not again, not again, not again._

"Kakashi…Obito," Rin breathed their names, her voice twisting in pain.

Kakashi looked at Obito, who looked pale and unsteady, but nodded with some determination and they took off at a run towards the village and where the back-up was coming for them. They met the back-up that came for them, and they had a medic who took one look at Rin's hectic chakra and who did what she could, which wasn't much.

"You have to get her to the village," the medic said to them. "I've managed to slow the chakra, but it's building up so much I can't get through. You need Tsunade, she's an expert on charka related injuries."

Kakashi scooped Rin in his arms again.

"We can get her there. You're both exhausted."

One of the shinobi who had come as back-up tried to take Rin from him, but Kakashi ripped her away and snarled at the man, who backed off. Kakashi looked at Obito.

"Can you do it?" He demanded.

Obito gave a nod. Through his haze of rising panic, Kakashi could see that he was still shaken from what Ryuu had done to him. Obito closed his eyes and took a deep breath, gripping Kakashi's shoulder and Kakashi braced himself. He pulled them all inside the Kamui, shocking the shinobi who had come for them, and they reappeared inside the village outside the hospital, where Obito collapsed.

Kakashi stormed through the doors carrying Rin and screaming for Tsunade. His heart raced, his body felt like it was moving on his own accord. He couldn't lose them, he couldn't lose them, he couldn't lose them, _not again, not again, not again._ Everything went black.

* * *

Minato sat on the chair between Rin and Kakashi's hospital beds with his face in his hands, his fingers digging into his skull, his mind going over what Obito had told him.

They'd been tracked by Mist-nin and guessed it had something to do with Ryuu since something similar had happened in their past lives, but the reasons for it were not the same. They'd had no choice but to confront the enemy, disregard their chakra inhibitors and fight for their lives. In a feat that Minato knew would gain them acclaim around all the villages, they managed to take out around fifty mostly jonin-level Mist-nin and capture two of them.

But then Ryuu had appeared. He'd put Obito under a powerful genjutsu and accessed his inner-mind, scouring memories that Obito had sealed away, which is how he figured out that Ryuu's Sharingan abilities were based in some kind of chakra control, which had also caused Kakashi's minor injuries and for Rin to almost die.

Kakashi had been hysterical when he'd arrived at the hospital, having to be knocked out by Tsunade herself before he let go of his vice-grip on Rin's body. He'd been muttering about 'not losing them again', and hearing that made Minato realise that neither Obito or Rin survived the war in Kakashi's past, which he knew would have deeply affected Kakashi. No wonder he'd been hysterical when faced that with the chance he'd lose Rin again. Minato hated that he had to be away from them so much, that he couldn't be there to protect them. If he was there, maybe he could have done something to keep them all from ending up in the hospital.

Tsunade had spent hours working on Rin, barely managing to stabilise her until Ayame had shown up in a fury and done something. No one would say anything about what she'd done, but Minato knew it had saved Rin's life, if not her chakra pathways. They were severely damaged and there was a high chance that she'd never fully recover from these injuries.

The way that Kakashi had acted had been enough for Tsunade to put him into a short-term medically induced coma while the treated his minor injuries, allowing his mind and body to heal as he slept. As soon as Obito had awoken and saw that Kakashi and Rin were safe, he'd refused to answer any questions about what happened until Minato had arrived. Even Tsunade's threats had been ineffective against him, and he was refusing to speak to anyone in his clan about his eyes. Word spread quickly about his Mangeyko.

The door to the room suddenly burst open, and Minato leaped to his feet. Ayame stormed into the room, looking at Kakashi and Rin, Obito following along behind her. Minato almost told her to get out, but he saw the tight lines of worry and fear and rage on her face and kept silent. He slowly lowered himself into the chair again and let out a tired sigh.

Ayame stood still in the doorway, staring at the occupied beds and Obito moved around her to get into the room. He gave a short glance to Minato before sitting on Rin's bed and holding her hand.

"This is S-Class. Not a word to anyone," Ayame said quietly.

"We know," Minato replied.

"Aya?!"

Ayame flinched at hearing her name.

"You better tell me what the hell is going on, Aya!"

Minato raised an eyebrow and watched as Tsunade thrust open the door to the room and glared at Ayame. He realised that Tsunade was also being kept in the dark. Ayame turned to Tsunade.

"Ryuu."

Tsunade stilled and then sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Just bloody great."

"He's body-hopping."

Tsunade grit her teeth.

"I'm going to kill him. I'll kill that damned  _snake_  — "

"Shut up, Tsuna!" Ayame cut her off angrily.

Minato's head snapped up and Obito turned.

"Orochimaru is working with Ryuu?" Obito glared at Ayame. "And you didn't tell us?"

Tsunade narrowed her eyes at Obito. Ayame looked tired.

"Why do you think we sent him out of the village with Jiraiya the last few years?" She said. "Protecting your precious classmates from his experiments and keeping him under Jiraiya's watchful eye."

"More secrets," Minato muttered with annoyance.

He saw Obito nod with agreement at his utterance.

"This isn't the place to talk about this," Ayame murmured. "Tsuna, tell me about the kids."

Tsunade straightened and looked at Kakashi.

"Chakra burns on his hands. Chakra was slightly disrupted, but easily fixed and his flowing normally again. Mostly the mental trauma seems to have been the problem. Rin Nohara, on the other hand, is more complicated."

Minato saw Ayame's fists clench.

"You already know, you fixed it, somehow," Tsunade said with narrowed eyes.

Ayame shook her head.

"Tell them, not me," she murmured.

Tsunade looked at Minato and Obito.

"All the chakra in her body had been forced somehow to gather around her heart, causing her immense pain and damaging the coils and pathways all across her chest and down into her stomach. If she had have gotten here any later, she'd be dead. Her heart would've failed. As it is, she's in for a couple more complicated surgeries to try and repair the chakra pathways, and then, maybe, if those are successful she'll be able to manipulate chakra again."

Minato felt his heart stop for a moment and saw Obito's head hang low.

"She might not be able to be a shinobi again?" Minato asked.

Tsunade looked over at Rin, her eyes tight with emotion.

"I'll do my best, but I can't make any guarantees. Maybe she will recover fully, maybe she'll recover some ability but not all, maybe she'll never be able to mould chakra." She looked at Minato. "I'm sorry, Minato. She's a good kunoichi, a promising medic. I wish I had better news."

Minato looked over at Rin. Sweet, caring, strong Rin, who was always looking out for them all. Making sure they were healed, fed, warm, dry, healthy, happy. He clenched his jaw and stood.

"You said you'd never let him touch them."

He looked at Ayame accusingly, who for the first time since he'd met her, looked back at him and he saw shamed in her features.

"This is what happens when you keep secrets," Minato said quietly, his anger draining. "People get hurt."

"I - I'm sorry," Ayame said, her voice wavering. "This wasn't - "

"Not what you planned? Not part of your calculations?" Minato shook his head. "You're just proving him right about you. Predictable."

Ayame flinched and Tsunade stepped forward.

"That's enough, Minato," she said harshly.

Minato shook his head and sat back down in his chair.

"Ayame."

Obito's voice was shaking. She looked over at Obito.

"He got…what he wanted."

Minato watched the colour drain from Ayame's face and he looked between Obito and Ayame with rising worry.

"How much?" Ayame questioned him, a desperate edge to her voice.

Obito glanced at Minato, who frowned at him questioningly, and then back at Ayame, who shook her head.

"You don't have to say it, I understand," she said quickly. "Only that much. Less than I thought."

"More than enough," Obito said darkly.

Minato watched Ayame nod with agreement. He met Tsunade's concerned and confused gaze, her lips twitched with annoyance. Minato understood that irritation.

"Anyone who's not a patient needs to leave now. Come back tomorrow, they'll be asleep until then," Tsunade said, turning on her heel and leaving the room.

Obito looked back at Rin, and Minato saw pain flash over his face for a brief moment. He turned away when Obito leaned forward to plant a soft kiss on Rin's forehead and saw that Ayame was looking over at Kakashi.

"Just a little longer," she whispered. "Just a little longer and I can tell you everything."

Minato just shook his head and walked out of the room, seeking the comforting aura of his wife, who greeted him when he returned home with a hug and he embraced her tightly, nuzzling his face into her neck and breathing in her familiar scent. He felt her hands stroke his back and had never been more grateful that Kushina Uzumaki was the one he came home to every day, and that she was strong and safe.

* * *

Word of the three kids who took down fifty Mist-nin by themselves spread quickly throughout the village and then throughout the shinobi world. Kakashi, Rin, and Obito became famous overnight, and Obito's Sharingan powers were marveled at by his clan. The truth about what happened to them was kept an S-class secret. All knowledge of Ryuu Uchiha remained hidden away, and people came to their own conclusions about their injuries and lamented the terrible state of the promising Rin Nohara.

One of the downsides to his new, slightly more social and open approach to his rebirth, as it were, meant that Kakashi's attempts at withdrawal from society were noticed, and he wasn't left alone. Instead of being able to wallow in his feelings, he was constantly being badgered by people - which was admittedly better than reliving the harsh words that Ayame had spat out about him - so instead of not allowing himself to be dragged around, he opted to go and be there with whoever it was, but not be present.

Instead of conversing, he'd read. Instead of engaging, he'd be lost in his memories of the life he lived before. Mostly he kept to the happy times, and most of those times were with Team 7. He comforted himself with memories of Naruto's antics, the rare moments of Sasuke indulging in childish endeavors, the look of pride and amazement on Sakura's face when she mastered something new or did something well. He chuckled to himself and Rin looked over at him from her hospital bed, glancing up from her textbook.

"What are you laughing about?" She asked, a soft smile on her face.

Kakashi looked at her, wondering how she was in such good spirits after being told she might never be a shinobi again. He gave her a crinkle-eyed smile and turned back to the window, looking out over the greenhouses, seeing Shouta potter around below.

"Just reminiscing about the past," he told her. "They always tried to see under my mask."

Rin giggled and closed her book.

"You're such an old man," she said. "Why don't you just show people? There's nothing wrong with your face."

Kakashi pulled down his mask and turned to give her a grin.

"Yeah, I know that, but it's fun," he replied.

Rin sighed and shook her head, smiling with a touch of exasperation. Her cheeks dusted pink a little and he raised an eyebrow.

"I'm too handsome, isn't that a good enough reason to hide my face?" He teased.

Rin giggled.

"Ah, then I should count myself lucky, I suppose."

Kakashi folded his arms over his chest and leaned back against the window sill and peered at her.

"Maybe we should… talk about the…confession and stuff," he said awkwardly.

Rin's face reddened.

"We don't need too," she said quickly. "I'm not - " She took a deep breath, and winced slightly. His expression tightened at the visual show of pain. "Kakashi, I meant what I said back then. I did love you. But now…"

She looked up at the roof.

"I spent a long time in a place between life and moving on."

Kakashi was reminded of the place he met his father when he died and nodded, understanding. She looked back at him and gave a small smile.

"I might not have grown in the same ways as you and Obito, but I did gain a broader understanding of the world. I still love you, Kakashi, but it's not the same kind of love."

Kakashi smiled at her.

"I feel like I'm being rejected," he murmured.

She laughed.

"Well, now you know how it feels," she responded, teasingly.

Her breath caught slightly and she closed her eyes in pain for a moment. Kakashi's jaw clenched. She caught the change in his expression.

"Don't look at me like that," she said to him, a frown on her face.

Kakashi raised his mask again, back in his place.

"I'm alive," she said in an insistent voice. "I - I'm not… I wish this didn't happen," she said, lowering her eyes to her clenched hands in her lap. "But now we have a better understanding of what we're up against."

Kakashi nodded, but he was still upset by her trying to put on a brave face in front of him.

"Has your big brain figured anything out yet?" Rin questioned him.

Kakashi shrugged.

"Maybe, but until Ayame decides to tell us anything, I can't confirm it."

"Still, your hunches are usually correct." Rin sunk back into her pillow. "Kakashi, why do you think she's so intent on not telling us anything until Minato-sensei is Hokage?"

Her voice lowered considerably as she spoke the last part of the sentence. Kakashi considered.

"I don't think she fully trusts the Third not to tell…old friends," he murmured.

Rin's mouth opened slightly.

"That's… do you really think that's it?"

Kakashi shrugged.

"It could be any number of reasons, but probably that's a big one," he sighed. "I guess I can understand — "

"— But we can't prepare if we don't know what's coming," Rin finished.

"You should just focus on getting better," Kakashi said.

Rin twisted her lips in disappointment.

"I will be a shinobi again," she said with determination. "I won't let him win and I will protect you all."

Kakashi felt a surge of fondness for her. Rin had been the top kunoichi of their class, she a had fire inside her that hadn't been dimmed despite her circumstances and he could only hope that it remained that way. In a lot of ways, she and Sakura were alike. At their cores, the thing that drove them to be better shinobi was protecting the people they cared about. For the last four years, he'd avoided talking to Rin about the day she'd tried to confess her feelings for him as Obito lay dying. Both of them hadn't wanted to talk about it, but he felt relieved that they had. He loved Rin, but his feelings for her didn't extend beyond friendship and a deep bond of trust and respect. He was happy to know that she felt the same as he did. It was almost as if the fact that all three of them had survived passed the days that both Obito and Rin were supposed to have died that all the things they'd kept hidden were finally allowed to be said. He walked over to her bed and laid a soft kiss on her temple.

"That's the Rin I know," he said, pulling back and ruffling her hair.

"Yeah, yeah," Rin murmured, softly hitting his hand away from her and smoothing out her hair. She peered at him with a little worry. "Go and spend time with your friends, Kakashi. Stop using me as an excuse to avoid having a social life."

"Do I have to?" Kakashi asked, whining just a little.

"Yes! We're only young once," Rin winked and waved him away. "Go away, I want to study."

She opened her book again and turned away, pointedly ignoring him.

"Fine, fine," he said. "I'll be back tomorrow."

Rin nodded.

"Bye, Kakashi. Don't forget to bring some flowers tomorrow."

Kakashi gave a little smile and shook his head, leaving her in the hospital room. He closed the door behind him and turned, only to see Ayame leaning against the wall by the door. Kakashi looked at her for a moment.

"You should go inside. She's nice, she won't bite," he said. "Unlike you"

The corner of her lips lifted ever so slightly.

"She's a good girl," she murmured. "She's strong. Not many people could take the news of their injuries as well as she did."

Kakashi stared at her for a moment.

"He controls chakra," he stated.

Ayame let out a sigh.

"Our parents were not slouches in teaching us the importance of perfect chakra control," she answered.

Kakashi narrowed his eyes.

"You never answer questions."

She gave a tight smile.

"I'm a shinobi, and now that Ryuu's seen some of Tobi's memories, I have a better idea of a timeline of when he'll show up," she told him. "But first - " she lowered her voice, " - we need to shake off the dark roots of the village and eradicate the snakes."

Kakashi gave a tight nod, his expression darkening.

"The Fourth comes first," Ayame said, stepping back and walking away.

Kakashi watched her depart, and decided to do as Rin told him, and seek out a friend.

* * *

Kushina passed Obito a cup of hot tea with a bright smile.

"I'm so happy you came over, Obito," she said happily.

Obito smiled back at her, but Kushina was more than aware of the shadows behind his expression. Minato had told her a little of what had happened on the last mission Team Kakashi went on, and she'd seen Rin in the hospital a few days ago.

"Me too," Obito murmured.

His usual cheery presence was dampened and Kushina fought against her instinct to reach over and grip him in a tight hug. As usual, the Nine-Tails began to stir within her in Obito (or Kakashi and Rin's) presence. She kept her breathing even and wondered for the umpteenth time what it was about the three of them that Kurama reacted too. He sipped his tea, so subdued, and Kushina couldn't stand it anymore.

"Are you okay?" She asked. "Minato told me what happened. Do you want to talk about it? I care about you, you know?!"

Obito looked slightly startled by her outburst, but his expression warmed and he gave her a real smile and lowered his cup.

"You worry too much, Kushina. You'll get wrinkles."

Kushina gasped.

"Take that back! I'm young, ya know!"

Obito grinned.

"You're practically an old lady for a shinobi."

Kushina narrowed her eyes.

"Old lady?" She growled.

Obito saw her expression and backtracked, just enough to sate her.

"Uh, no, I was only joking. You're super young, and super, super beautiful too!"

Kushina nodded and then smiled.

"You have good taste, ya know!"

She peered at him.

"So why don't you tell me why you're really here?"

He gave her a sheepish look and scratched the back of his head.

"Um. Can I stay here for a while?"

She frowned.

"Why?"

"Well, uh. Since the word is out about my Sharingan being, uh, advanced, my clan has been really annoying?" He laughed nervously. "I was hoping to lay low…"

Kushina raised eyebrows.

"Why not stay with Kakashi? I'm sure he'd let you."

"Yeah, but that's the first place they'd look. But my clan wouldn't mess with you or Minato-sensei, and Mikoto won't tell the elders I'm here 'cos you're friends and all," he smiled hopefully at her.

Kushina laughed.

"Oh, all right, all right. You've convinced me," she grinned. "I know how annoying those elders can be without Fugaku around to make sure they behave themselves."

Obito let out a breath of relief and sunk into the couch cushions.

"You're a life-saver."

Kushina smiled.

"Well, Minato is going on a mission again tomorrow," she said with a little frown. "So it'll be nice to have the company."

Obito looked guilty.

"Then I'll come and stay from tomorrow," he said. "You probably want to be alone before goes."

Kushina shook her head.

"Nope. You're staying right here, Obito! We're going to have a nice family dinner together, ya know?"

Some of the shadows in Obito's eyes seemed to fade.

"Okay," he answered quietly. "Sounds nice."

Kushina nodded. Sometimes what shinobi like Minato, Obito and Kakashi needed was someone who they could be themselves around, someone who could make them forget their worries for a little while, and lift the burdens on their shoulders. If Kushina could be that person for them, she was happy.

Minato arrived home not long before dinner was ready, and Kushina greeted him at the door with a smile, telling him about Obito staying. Minato was surprised but happy. The dinner that evening was filled with laughter and smiles and an overwhelming feeling of warmth. Kushina lay beside Minato after making sure that Obito was comfortable on the couch. She snuggled into his side, her head on his chest, and his arm tightened around her shoulders and his lips pressed to her temple.

"It was nice tonight," he murmured.

She nodded.

"Obito's so funny, you know?"

She felt Minato's chuckle in his chest and he hummed in agreement.

"Is he going to be all right?" Kushina asked, biting her lip.

Minato took a deep breath and kissed her forehead again.

"He's strong," Minato replied quietly.

Kushina settled into him. She knew there were things he was keeping from her, and she knew it had to do with those kids, but Minato never did anything without a reason and so she knew that when it was time for her to know, she would. Kushina trusted Minato more than anything, more than anyone.

"Be safe, Minato," she whispered, looking up at his face and pressing a kiss into his jaw. "Come home."

He turned on his side so they were face-to-face. He pressed a kiss to her nose, which made her smile, and then her forehead and finally her lips.

"Always."


	16. Part Four: The Fourth Hokage

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello!
> 
> Things are heating up now! Part Four is only this chapter. It's purely for Minato because I LOVE HIM.
> 
> In Part Five...dun dun DUN! The past is revealed!
> 
> Thank you all for your kind reviews and enjoyment of this story! It's been pretty fun and intense and heartbreaking for me to write it too...
> 
> Also...
> 
> Don't hate me for the end of this chapter.
> 
> hehehe... xox

 

**Part Four: The Fourth Hokage**

**Chapter Fourteen**

Ayame decided that she was going to leave the Hokage Council when the war was finished. If she had to attend the damn meetings anymore she was going to scream. Fugaku could appoint anyone he wanted as her replacement, she didn't care, just as long as that person was up to the task of outmanoeuvring Danzo Shimura. Plus, Tsunade and Nawaki would still be there, and that was a comfort at least. It was surprising to her how much Tsuna actually kept quiet during the meetings. She could control herself when she wanted to, Ayame supposed. But it was more likely she was just biding her time to wait and explode at something absolutely ridiculous.

She knew what the meeting was about. The Stone had sent back terms for peace. Terms in  _their_  favour, and she knew that Sarutobi-sensei would agree to them. Which meant that Nawaki and Tsuna probably would, and the other three wouldn't.

"We can breathe a sigh of relief for a while," Koharu said, surprising Ayame.

"Are you satisfied with an agreement like this?" Danzo asked infuriated, arms folded over his chest. "It's as though we lost the war!"

He looked at Hiruzen with narrowed and derisive eyes.

"Continuing the war any further would be disastrous for the already exhausted Hidden Leaf," the Hokage said calmly.

"Many of my friends gave their lives for this great war!" Danzo spat angrily. "It's like they died in vain! How will you take responsibility?"

"Don't speak as if you're the only one," Tsunade growled.

"We should listen to the Hokage, instead of thinking of our own selfish needs and desires," Ayame said, looking at Danzo. "Although it's not ideal, it will bring peace."

"Our Ghost begs for peace?" Koharu sneered, unable to keep herself from baiting Ayame despite agreeing with her for once. "What irony."

Ayame looked at her sadly, wondering if the old woman really was the heartless witch she acted like most of the time. Probably, she decided.

"Aren't you tired of war?" She questioned, looking away from them. "I'd like to sleep without thinking of a hundred different ways to kill someone, or make contingency plans in case the village is attacked."

There was a contemplative silence over the council. Homura and Koharu exchanged looks of surprise, whereas Danzo narrowed his eye at Ayame. Tsunade and Nawaki both gave her worried looks and Hiruzen cleared his throat and drew back the attention in the room to himself.

"You asked how I would take responsibility." Lord Third drew back their attention. "I will do so by stepping down as the Hokage."

"But — "

"Lord Third, that is — "

"Please, councillors," Nawaki said in a loud and strained voice. "This is…difficult news in a difficult time, but the Hokage has made his choice."

"It appears so," Homura said standing. "And it seems the best choice. I don't think we have much more to talk about at this time."

"You may come to regret this, Hiruzen," Danzo said, staring intently at the Hokage. "Your weakness has always been how soft you are."

"And yours has always been your own perceived strength," Ayame snapped.

Danzo glared at her.

"No one cares about your outdated opinion  _Lord Danzo,"_  she mocked.

"Ayame." She looked at Lord Third, who was giving her a disapproving frown. "That's enough."

She looked back at Danzo, who was looking at her with undisguised loathing.

"Princess Ayame, you are speaking to one of your elders who has dedicated his life to the village," Koharu said vehemently. "Show some respect."

Ayame rolled her eyes.

"Yes, yes, of  _course,_  he has," she replied sardonically. "He's the  _only_  one. Everything in the world revolves around Danzo Shimura."

Tsunade scoffed a laugh and Nawaki looked pained at her comments. Homura merely shook his head tiredly, as Koharu blustered.

"It's quite all right, Koharu," Danzo said, standing. "I'm sure the Uchiha Princess has her own problems to worry about. Perhaps she's just anxious about the imminently expected return of her dear, murderous brother."

Ayame narrowed her eyes dangerously and tilted her head smiling wickedly at Danzo.

"And you are not,  _dear_  Danzo? I would have thought you were itching for the chance to kill him, you and all your little mindless followers."

Danzo's eyes sharpened.

"At least my allegiances are clear."

Ayame felt her tiredness wash away and her anger boil.

"You know as well as any of us that Ayame Uchiha is  _not_  her brother," Lord Third said, playing peacemaker. "And Ayame is more than aware of the contributions you have given to the village. This is a time of upheaval for the Leaf, do not make it harder by bickering between yourselves."

"You always pick the most impractical moments to be authoritative, Hiruzen," Danzo said after a moment. He glanced around the room with distaste and then departed with Koharu and Homura. "Good day."

Ayame couldn't wait for the day she could rip that eye he was hiding out of his socket and then remove his head from his shoulders.

Tsunade gave a great, heaving sigh.

"Why do you let him speak to you like that?" She snapped. "Old friend or not, Danzo Shimura is — "

"Worthy of respect, whether you think it or not," Hiruzen answered her evenly. "I am well aware of the man he is."

Ayame shook her head, not believing he really understood at all.

"Just as I am aware of the woman you are," he said pointedly.

She turned slightly to him.

"Sarutobi-sensei, I'll take that as a compliment," she said.

Ayame saw the same worry in the Hokage's face as she did in Tsunade's brow when they looked at her. Ayame gave a falsely bright smile.

"Well, as much fun as it is being with you, I've things to do," she said.

"What things?" Nawaki asked her. "Do you need help?"

She saw him glance at Hiruzen who gave a small nod.

"I wouldn't mind the company, I suppose," Ayame said, her smile softening slightly at him. "But first, Tsuna, can you update me about Rin and the others? I'm sure the Hokage wants to know as well."

Tsunade raised an eyebrow and then shrugged.

"She's scheduled for surgery in two days. We'll see then," Tsunade answered.

"And how are you?" Lord Third asked Tsunade. "You've been overseeing part of her training, haven't you? You liked her."

Tsunade folded her arms over her chest.

"Well. She was a promising medic, and she's got grit," Tsunade said with a small smile. "With teammates like hers, she'd need it."

Ayame had to agree with that. Kakashi and Obito were ridiculous in all ways, and she thoroughly enjoyed that about them. Nawaki looked at her questioningly, and she held up a finger, indicating they'd leave soon.

"How are the other kids?" Ayame asked. "Kakashi and Obito?"

"They come by to see her every day," Tsunade responded with an irritated scowl. "They're loud and disruptive in the hospital, and she tends to exert herself when they're around."

"Should I discipline them?" Ayame asked with a grin.

"They're not even scared of me," Tsuna said, her scowl deepening.

"Oh, but they're  _terrified_  of me," Ayame answered, pleased.

"Discipline won't be necessary," The Hokage cleared his throat.

Ayame glanced at Nawaki and smiled.

"Let's get going, Nawaki!" She beamed. "I'm super hungry. Let's get food on the way."

Tsunade and the Hokage watched them leave.

"Where are we going?" Nawaki asked her.

"Ramen?" Ayame shrugged.

"And after?"

"Nowhere, really," she answered. "I just wanted to get out for a while. See the village, relax."

"You? Relax?" Nawaki raised an eyebrow.

Ayame lightly punched his shoulder and laughed.

"I only relax with people I care about," she said. "And those are few and far between."

"Yes, yes," Nawaki sighed. "I'm so lucky."

Ayame squeezed his shoulder, glad of the company and glad that despite everything she continues to keep from him - which he knows she is keeping a lot - and despite how frustrated she know she made him, she was glad that Nawaki would always be there when she needed some company.

He reached up with his hand and squeezed it, his fingers lingering on her hand a moment longer than necessary before he dropped his hand back to wheel his chair.

"Want a push?" She asked him.

"Only if you promise not to run."

Ayame stepped behind him and gripped the handles of the wheelchair.

"No promises, Nawaki!"

He groaned.

* * *

The relief that the war had ended was palpable in the faces of everyone in Konoha. The families of the shinobi on the front lines waited for news of their loved ones to return, or to hear if they would see their names engraved on the stone epitaph. Obito and Kakashi, when not training or at the hospital with Rin, spent their time watching over Itachi Uchiha, who had not long since returned from his father's expedition to the front lines of the war, and returned a slightly different boy than the one who had left.

Watching over Itachi was a good way for them to avoid the general populous. Obito was avoiding the discussion that would inevitably take place about his Sharingan, and both of them were avoiding the odd hero-worship they were getting for their defeat of the Mist-nin. Both of them felt a certain pride at having distinguished themselves, but it was overshadowed by Rin's condition.

Things were busy within Hokage Tower. The negotiations of the armistice and the tentative alliances and trade agreements were being drawn up, shinobi who had distinguished themselves during wartime were being promoted and reassigned. The hospital was overrun with patients; returning shinobi, injuries that had been deemed 'fine enough to work on after the war' were finally being treated.

It took weeks for the village to settle into a post-war routine. But Minato, Kakashi and Obito didn't give themselves a break. They continued to train vigorously, perfecting their jutsu, and Kakashi finally managed - just one time, but it was enough to spur him on - to use his Chidori properly. With Obito's help and lessons from Rin on chakra control, he was beginning to gain a deeper understanding of how to control the strong and erratic lightning chakra that made his Chidori what it was. They needed to be ready. Obito had told them what memories Ryuu had accessed, glossing over the exact details to Minato-sensei.

"It was a night in October," Obito said.

Kakashi's back snapped straight at hearing that. Minato looked at him questioningly.

"The - the - "

"There was an attack on the village," Kakashi said quickly. "A lot of people died. It… it was a very traumatic time for everyone, and…affected the rest of the world and the future."

Minato had nodded, his eyes narrowed by the lack of information they provided him with, but able to deduce that this was likely the 'evil' Obito who had attacked.

"So he intends to do what… Tobi did?" Minato asked tentatively.

Obito swallowed and glanced at Kakashi.

"We don't know," Kakashi said quietly. "But probably. We just don't know  _why."_

"Because Ayame won't tell us anything," Minato said sighing.

It was a familiar and tiresome statement, and Kakashi and Obito were only too glad that very soon it wouldn't be said any longer.

* * *

Minato walked to the Hokage's sitting room calmly, keeping his countenance from betraying any anxiety that he felt. He did not allow himself to hope too much for what the Hokage had called him in to talk about.

He entered the room after a short knock and closed the door behind him. Lord Third sat cross-legged on his purple cushion in his Hokage robes, his hat discarded on a table to the side of the room, and he acknowledged Minato with an incline of his head. Minato walked to the end of the carpet, a few feet from the slightly raised dais that the Hokage was seated at, and lowered into a respectful crouch.

"Good afternoon, Minato."

"Lord Hokage."

Minato raised his head. The Third studied him for a moment, his expression unreadable.

"I believe you will carry on the village's Will of Fire. I want to entrust you with the future of the Leaf Village and in fact that of the whole shinobi world." Lord Third looked seriously at him. "Will you accept my offer?"

Minato's eyes widened slightly, and then he gave a short nod.

"Lord Third I shall do my best to be worthy of your trust."

"I wish I could have passed this position on to you under better circumstances than the ones we find ourselves in," he said, his voice less tense than it had been. "It's almost certain that what lies ahead of you will not be peaceful."

Minato felt his resolve harden.

"I am prepared for that."

Lord Third gave a short hum in his throat, closed his eyes a moment. When he opened his eyes, his expression was warm, and he gave a smile.

"I believe in you. I know you can do it."

Minato felt a rush of pride at the words. He gave a small smile back and nodded.

"Thank you, Lord Third," he said.

"It is my pleasure, Lord Fourth."

Minato started at the title, swallowed thickly and nodded, slightly dazed.

"The official announcement will be in a few days," Lord Third said. "You will need to travel with me to be granted the title by the Fire Daiymo, but as he has already accepted your nomination, it's merely ceremonial."

"I understand."

"Then I suggest you go home, Minato, and spend time with your wife. You'll be very busy, very soon," the Hokage said with a little glint in his eyes.

Minato rose to his feet and bowed.

"Thank you, Lord Third," he said.

Lord Third incline his head and Minato was dismissed.

Minato's mind whirled with thought as he walked through the village to his home. He shuffled through what the knew and understood about the status of the peace treaties, sifted through his knowledge of his fellow shinobi, considered the new placements of his special marked kunai and many of the other things he would need to learn about. It suddenly felt a little overwhelming, but Minato believed in himself. He was going to be the Hokage, something he'd dreamed about since he was a child. He walked into the house, smelling the food that Kushina was cooking, and made his way into the dining room, looking at her from the kitchen. She hummed as she cooked. Her hair tied up in a ponytail, and he imagined she looked content as she worked.

Kushina was another thing that was heavy in his mind. He needed to protect her, not only because she was a jinchuuriki, but because she was his wife. He knew better than anyone that jinchuuriki were not the tools the villages so desired. As the Yellow Flash, his enemies had grown large and numerous. Now, as the Fourth Hokage, his family would most certainly be in danger from those seeking retribution against him. His expression of serious thought broke and gave way to a fond smile the longer he looked at her, and he breathed out a sigh of happy contentment and settled into a less tense standing position.

Kushina, hearing his loud breath, jumped a little and turned to him, smiling at him.

"Just what do you think you're doing over there, you know?" She asked as she walked to him. "What did Lord Third want with you anyway?"

"Well - "

"Hold on. Did you get scolded for something?" She questioned, waving her arms and the ladle she was holding dismissively before she folded her arms over her chest. "Oh so what, don't worry about it, you know?"

Minato put a hand on his hip and put his lightly curled fist to his chin thoughtfully, amusement in his voice.

"No, actually it wasn't that."

Kushina unfolded her arms and looked at him with a mix of concern and worry.

"Oh? Then what was it?" She asked.

"Well. Um." Minato cleared his throat and pointed a thumb at himself. "He wants me to be the Fourth Hokage."

Kushina, who had not registered what he said quite yet, furrowed her brow slightly, her tone one that she used to try and cheer him up.

"Oh, yeah? Well, don't you mind what he says. The Hokage is just — "

Her eye's bugged open as it sank in. She looked at him in shock.

"Wait! What did you say, Minato?!"

He gave her a nod.

"I've just been named the Fourth Hokage."

She stared, open-mouthed for a moment before she gasped and her expression brightened and a radiant smile broke out on her face. She laughed and flung arms around his shoulders and hugged him tightly.

"Congrats, you know!"

In her happiness, she jumped up off the floor, forcing him to hold her waist tightly as she kicked her legs and lost her slippers.

"Woah, hey, hey - hold on!" He cried out in alarm.

She jumped back and cleared her throat, her face becoming serious. She took a breath and bowed to him.

"Thank you, for all of your hard work," she said sombrely.

"Thanks, Kushina," he answered seriously.

They stared at each other for a moment, before she squealed with delight again and wrapped him tightly in an embrace. He finally allowed himself to really smile.

"You're going to be great, you know!"

* * *

The sign was posted in the early hours of the morning before the village awoke.

_I, HIRUZEN SARUTOBI, HEREBY ANNOUNCE MY RESIGNATION AS HOKAGE, AND APPOINT MINATO NAMIKAZE AS THE FOURTH HOKAGE. SIGNED, THIRD HOKAGE HIRUZEN SARUTOBI._

Kakashi sat on a bench on the main road of the village. The same one as the previous time, reading the same book and waited.

As expected, Might Guy was screaming his name and running towards him.

"Hey, Kakashi!"

Kakashi looked up as he approached, and watched as he took the book from his hands.

"'How a Shinobi Should Die'?! What is this?" Might Guy asked with some confusion.

"Just a book about how shinobi are supposed to die," Kakashi answered easily, holding out his hand for Guy to give it back.

With a shrug, Guy gave it to him.

"So what's happened?" Kakashi asked him.

"Minato-sensei will be the Fourth Hokage!" Guy exclaimed with a fist pump.

Kakashi smiled.

"That's a relief," he murmured.

"If you say so!" Guy answered.

Kakashi's mind went back into his memories.

"Want to go and tell Rin with me?" He asked Guy.

Guy nodded enthusiastically.

Kakashi put his book - one that he didn't particularly like very much anymore - away in his pocket and stood. He strolled with Guy through the village, and Guy recounted to him how awesome Minato-sensei was, as Kakashi responded with little hums of agreement. It was good, this time around, that he wasn't going to talk to Rin's grave. With that in mind, Kakashi made an effort to forget all the rest of the things that were happening and going to happen, and just enjoyed the excited atmosphere of the village and was happy for his hard-working and deserving sensei.

* * *

Obito lay on his back on Ayame's verandah, staring at the wooden slats of the roof above him, relief coursing through him that it was official that Minato-sensei was the Hokage now. Things would be easier in some ways, and not in others. As for Obito, this life was all new to him. He no longer had any foresight to what his life would be, and he felt strangely free because of it. He finally felt like he was living the right way, with his friends and his village. But the threat of Ryuu Uchiha hung over him like a dark cloud, and he was so angry with himself for being caught in a genjutsu, and having his memories raided, and for Rin being hurt. His hands curled into fists and he slammed one down on the verandah.

"Careful, there. That wood is as old as the Third," Ayame said from her place on a chair not too far from where he was. "Did you know that Hashirama built this house for my father? It was supposed to be some kind of show of their alliance and trust."

"That's super interesting," Obito muttered sarcastically.

"He and my mother used to have a house in the woods somewhere as well. It was also built by Hashirama. It was for Sakura and Itachi when they first arrived."

Obito's fists uncurled.

"Where is it? Can we go there?" He asked.

"No," Ayame answered, a little sadness in her voice. Obito sat up and turned to look at her. "My brother burned it down."

Obito frowned.

"Why?"

Ayame gave him a tight smile.

"Because he said it was proof the world was wrong."

Obito's frown deepened.

"What does that mean?"

She sighed and kicked out a leg unhappily.

"It means that my brother has a screw loose."

Obito lay back down.

"So when are you going to make your big revelation?" Obito asked. "Minato's the Hokage now."

Ayame hummed.

"Soon," she replied evasively. "He's going to be a little busy once he gets the hat, and that won't be for a few days."

"He's going to call you in and demand answers as soon as he can, you know?"

Ayame chuckled.

"I wouldn't expect anything less," she replied.

He tilted his head so he could see her, and he saw she was smiling. He made a disgusted face.

"You don't have a crush on sensei, do you? That's gross!"

Ayame seemed shocked for a moment and then she laughed loudly, very amused.

"Well, I maybe if I was as young as I looked," she mused. "He's definitely a handsome man."

Obito gagged.

"But I don't have a crush on him! What am I, fifteen years old?" She laughed.

Obito enjoyed Ayame in her more relaxed moments, when her walls were down. He knew it wasn't with many people, and thought that she was like this with him because she felt a kinship with him. Dark pasts tended to do that. He smiled a little.

"So what about you?" Ayame prodded. "Aren't you all in love with Rin?"

Obito reddened and then sighed.

"It's weird."

"Why?"

"Because I'm technically….thirty-something? In a kid body. Rin is thirteen."

"Ah. I see," Ayame said. "Well. I'd much rather be me than you in this situation. I've never loved anyone."

Obito sat up and turn, crossing his legs and peering at her.

"Anyone?" He asked. "Not even a little bit?"

Ayame rolled her eyes.

"What are we talking about this for?"

Obito grinned.

"Come on, just tell me."

Ayame stared at him for a moment.

"The only people I've ever loved are my family. It didn't turn out well."

Obito lowered her eyes to the floor.

"Well… I do have one moment I thought I was in love," she said in a happier tone. "Too bad he died."

"Who was it?" Obito asked.

"The Third Kazekage."

Obito's eyes widened in shock and Ayame grinned.

"Oh, Obito, he was amazing." She looked almost giddy for a moment. "It was the Second Shinobi War and we were enemies, but that didn't matter. I was infiltrating Suna with Sakumo, and the mission went awry. Of course, my reputation meant that the Kazekage himself came to kill me. He came  _this close_  to killing me, and at that moment I knew he was the only one for me. Honestly, I could've died happy then and there."

Obito rolled his eyes.

"That is the grossest thing I've ever heard you say."

"Ah, but it is true. I admired him a lot. He was strong and there was something about him that drew you in. In those days, someone like him might have helped me." Her voice trailed off and she looked away. She turned back a moment later. "Did I ever tell you about Izara?"

Obito shook his head.

"Ayame. You never tell us anything," he said flatly.

"Ah. Right. Well. Izara was my older brother by five years."

"He died, didn't he? Of illness." The Hokage had already told them a little of Izara, but he didn't want to spoil her good mood.

She nodded.

"Mama - Sakura was devastated. She spent all the time until she fell pregnant with us trying to find a way to cure him, but Izara was just one of the unlucky ones. There was nothing she could do, not even with all her skill and talent."

Obito clenched his jaw.

"Sakura was strong," he said. "It must have been hard on her."

"Izara never complained though. Since Sakura and Madara were away at the war most of our childhoods, he took care of us. Tobirama-sensei said that if he was healthy, he would've taken Izara for a student. He was a genius too."

"Of course he was," Obito muttered. "Madara would have three genius children."

Ayame's eyes sharpened.

"Your Madara is  _not_  my father," she said firmly. "And my mother was extremely intelligent. Don't discount her."

Obito muttered an apology and she seemed satisfied.

"He died when he was seventeen. He wasn't supposed to live past ten."

"I'm sorry."

Ayame gave him a grateful smile.

"We were eleven when it happened. It was only a few months after Hashirama died in the war, so it was a bad, bad time for my family," she said, her expression darkening with the memories. "Death is never easy, and it's even harder for the Uchiha. We lost two people we loved beyond anything in the space of three months. Neither of us were ever the same ever again."

Obito saw that whatever good mood she had been in was now gone, replaced with a sober and sorrowful expression. He wasn't sure what to say or do, so he said nothing. He sat in silence with her and passed the rest of the afternoon in a companionable quiet, thinking about all the possibilities the future held.

* * *

Kakashi and Obito were ordered - on punishment of slow and painful torture - to ensure that Rin didn't overexert herself and that she went only from the hospital to the ceremony and immediately back to the hospital. Tsunade's orders were absolute in this matter, and Kakashi and Obito had already planned to follow them to a tee. They didn't want to risk anything bad happening to Rin. Still, Tsunade didn't trust them, so she ordered Shizune to go with them and ' _keep an eye on the idiot duo_ '.

The four of them left the hospital together, and Rin made sure that Shizune wasn't left out of the conversation. Kakashi was more than happy to converse with her, having gotten to know her when Tsunade was the Hokage. The child Shizune was very alike the adult, she wasn't a boisterous person, and he could see the concern for Rin in her eyes which he appreciated.

All the shinobi in the village were gathered before the Hokage tower. Obito cleared a path through the throng to allow space for Rin to move through unhindered, which she gave an exasperated sigh at, but still thanked Obito for doing. They found a place right near the front, beside their classmates, who were milling about waiting for them to arrive, and who all became brighter when they saw Rin finally out of the hospital.

Kakashi looked around and saw Mikoto and Itachi. He was unsurprised when Shisui came barrelling through the crowd to hang around him like a puppy, and telling him he was so lucky that his sensei was Hokage, and that it practically made Shisui also Minato's student since Kakashi was like his sensei, and that could be  _please, please_  introduce him properly to Minato at some point. Obito flicked Shisui on the head and asked with mock annoyance why he was always hanging around Kakashi and not him when they were clansmen, and Itachi wandered over to them and asked why they were making such a ruckus when they were at an important ceremony.

Suddenly, Rin hit their arms and pointed upwards in excitement. Minato-sensei had walked to present himself as the Hokage to the crowd, and removed his hat, giving them all a confident smile.mObito cheered loudly and grabbed Kakashi's wrist, making him part of the cheer. Mikoto, who had wandered over to them, giggled at their display and whispered that Obito was lucky Fugaku wasn't around to scold him.

It was now official, Minato Namikaze was the Fourth Hokage.

* * *

Ayame stood off to the side, watching the exchange of the Hokage's hat from Third to Fourth. Nawaki, Tsunade, Koharu and Homura were there, behind Lord Third, with the clan heads and Kushina. Danzo was nowhere to been seen.

With solemnity in his face, the Third gave his hat to Minato. He was so young. Ayame felt her chest tighten in anxiety. But he was strong, and he had belief in himself, so that was good. Minato was the right person for the job.

Minato took the hat from the Third and Placed it on his head, keeping his hand on the front of it. Ayame saw him take a moment, feeling the weight of his new responsibilities before he raised his head. All his actions were deliberate. The raising of his head, the strong set of his shoulders. The way he opened his eyes with an intense gaze. The determination in the way he held himself. Minato had a way about him that made you believe in him, and Ayame smiled to herself as she leaned against one of the four high-rising beams that were atop the Hokage Tower. She glanced at Kushina, who had a look of fierce pride on her face for her husband.

The cheer that went up from the gathered shinobi was loud and booming. Minato removed his hat, and she could imagine he had a look of supreme and calm confidence on his face. She looked over at the Third, who was looking at Minato with an unreadable expression and wondered how he was feeling about all of it. Probably sad, probably relieved, mostly tired, she imagined.

Minato said something about unity and taking care and a promise of something and then turned back to the group on the roof. They congratulated him and wanted to talk to him immediately, but she saw him decline them and they all left, spare two ANBU and Kushina who lingered a moment longer to share a smile and bow before she left them alone.

He turned to her and Ayame pushed off the pillar with her shoulder and walked over to him. His hat was in his hand, and he raised it to replace it on his head. Ayame fought back a little smile and surprised him by dropping into a deferential crouch before him.

"Lord Hokage," she murmured.

She raised her head and looked up at him, eyes sweeping over his form.

"I quite like the new robe," she grinned, rising to her feet. "Very you, very nice update."

Minato gave a wry smile.

"Ah. There's the sarcastic Ayame Uchiha I've come to know."

"Know and love?"

He raised an eyebrow.

"Not quite," Minato answered.

Ayame smiled.

"Congratulations, Minato. Truly."

Sensing her sincerity, Minato nodded in gratitude.

"Not like I didn't see it coming, though," Ayame gave a coy smile. "You could almost call it destiny."

At that, she expected some kind of reaction, but it seemed like Minato had his serious pants on. He gave her a long look.

"We have things to discuss," he said.

Ayame kept her face cleared of emotion, but she felt a tingle of nerves at the now impending conversation, of laying herself and her past bare.

"Yes, but more importantly, what are you going to do about Orochimaru? You've been informed, haven't you?"

Minato's jaw tightened.

"I've sent a message to Jiraiya, I expect to hear back from him soon."

"You do work fast," Ayame said, impressed.

She took a step toward him, standing at his side and lowered her voice.

"Listen to your instincts, and don't let others opinions sway you. Keep the people you trust close."

He cut his eyes to her.

"Await my summons," he said to her.

Ayame stood on the top of the tower for some time after Minato departed, wondering what her brother was doing now, and thinking how disappointed Izara would be in the both of them for who they became. She gave a wry smile at Tobriama-sensei's giant head, and vowed that she'd finally end all of this, one way or another, and the taste of vengeance would be sweet.

* * *

Minato stood behind his desk, arms folded as he stared over the village. Night had fallen, and the village was alit with lanterns lighting the paths and roads and homes of the people he had promised to protect. With how intense things had been the last few days, he'd barely been able to give thought to Ayame and Ryuu Uchiha. He'd been locked into discussions about the peace treaties between the different nations, been briefed on the inner workings of the village and been making plans to improve and change things.

Minato understood the reservations that the elders of the council had against him, and had listened to their badgering about the way things were done. However, he was not going to bow to their demands or reprimands. He admitted that he was young and inexperienced, but he had held true to the belief that this post-war era was one that needed a fresh outlook on the way the world could and would change. The First Hokage and Madara Uchiha had been about the same age as he was when they created the village, so he was confident that he could continue on with the same strength and determination as they had. In the end, youth and age didn't matter. Change was inevitable, and he was going to ride out the difficulties with unwavering faith that the village would continue to prosper under his direction.

Having Nawaki to support him was a boon. Nawaki was experienced and understood who to talk to, what needed to be done, and what to prioritise. If he hadn't been around, Minato was certain that Kushina would have had to come and drag him out of the office to come home and get some food and sleep.

The ANBU that he had sent to summon Ayame appeared in a crouch on the roof outside his window. Minato slid open the window.

"Lord Hokage. She wished to inform you that she will be here with the others soon."

Minato frowned.

"What others?"

"She didn't say."

"Thank you. Dismissed."

The ANBU disappeared.

Minato closed the window and frowned, wondering who Ayame was planning to bring with her. He activated the privacy seals in the room, ones that had been there previously, and ones that he had added himself. There was a soft knock at the door, and Rin poked her head in.

"Minato-sensei? I mean, Lord Fourth," she said, slightly flustered.

Minato gave her a smile.

"Come in, Rin."

"What are you being weird for, Rin? He's just Minato-sensei with a fancy hat," Obito said, walking in behind her.

Rin hit his arm.

"He's the Hokage!"

Kakashi rolled his eyes, entering the room last. Minato chuckled at their exchange.

"Minato-sensei is fine. Preferable even." He gave them an apologetic look. "I'm sorry I haven't been able to see you yet."

Obito waved a hand dismissively.

"You're busy, it's cool! We didn't want to bother you either."

"Are you feeling all right Rin?" Minato asked.

She nodded.

"A little sore and tired, but so far the results of the transplant seem positive," she answered, hope in her eyes.

"That's a relief," Minato said. "So. You all knew about this, didn't you? About my becoming the Hokage."

"Oh, don't be so shocked, Minato-sensei. It's not like you didn't suspect what we'd been hiding," Kakashi grinned.

Minato had to acknowledge that he had considered the possibility. Added that to Ayame's 'one day' spiel and he couldn't think of many other options.

"Uh, Min- Lord Hokage," Obito cleared his throat. "I would like to put forth my intent to join ANBU."

Minato blinked in surprise.

"So would I," Kakashi said.

They looked at him seriously. Minato narrowed his eyes at Kakashi.

"I take it you were in ANBU?" He questioned.

Kakashi nodded.

"I'll take it under consideration," he settled, not making any firm decision.

Before either of them could argue like he saw they were about to, there was a knock at the door.

"Minato?"

Minato's was surprised to hear Kushina's voice on the other side of the door. Kakashi, Obito and Rin all gave each other wide-eyed looks, and he realised that they hadn't invited her. He was hit with the realisation that it was Ayame's doing, and a tight knot of worry formed in his stomach. If Kushina was there, it meant that Ryuu had plans for the Nine-Tails, he was sure of it. She opened the door and came into the room, blinking in surprise when she saw the three kids in there.

"Hello, you three!" She smiled. She glanced nervously around. "Um. Ayame showed up at the door and told me to come here. She was pretty insistent, you know."

She looked at Minato who gave a small, tight nod.

"We're waiting for her," he said, his voice losing all friendliness and warmth.

He felt the shift in the demeanour of his old team and saw that Kushina understood that whatever was happening was serious. Minato glanced at Obito, who looked paler by the second and saw Rin take his hand and give him a comforting squeeze. Kushina noticed it too and frowned, eyes flickering to Minato. They looked at each other in understanding and Kushina straightened her shoulders, ready and prepared like the shinobi she was.

"Did Ayame tell you anything?" Minato questioned her.

"She only said that I was needed immediately at the Hokage Tower, and to listen calmly to everything that was said when I got here," Kushina replied.

Minato gave a short nod.

They waited in tense silence for a few more minutes and Minato kept his calm as people he didn't expect arrived with Ayame coming in the room last. He looked around his office with a deep frown, his gaze settling on Ayame last.

"Everyone in this room needs to know the truth, and some already do," she said to him.

"What truth?" Fugaku Uchiha asked, irritation and weariness on his face.

Ayame shifted uncomfortably and Minato remembered that she didn't like to be in the Hokage's office.

"The truth about the founding of this village," Shikaku Nara answered, his steady gaze on Minato.

Minato wasn't surprised to see him there. Sakura Uchiha had been a Nara before she married Madara. Adopted or not, because of Sakura's connection to them Ayame was technically part of the Nara clan as well, and Shikaku was a verified tactical genius. Her trusting him wasn't surprising in the least.

"What does that mean?" Nawaki asked with a frown.

Minato looked expectantly at Ayame.

"It means - " Ayame took a deep breath. "It means that it's time for me to tell you the truth about my mother, about where she came from, and why my brother wants to kill those three kids, Kushina Uzumaki, Minato Namikaze and probably you too, Nawaki."

There was a shocked silence in the room and Minato absorbed every word she said, his mind quickly connecting different theories.

Kushina stared at Ayame with wide eyes, a look mirrored by Nawaki.

"Aya, what's going on?" He asked her.

Ayame gave him a tight smile and then revealed that her mother was a time-traveller. They took the news in silence and he could see the disbelief on the faces of Fugaku, Nawaki and Kushina. But when the three of them looked at the everyone else gathered and realised that this wasn't some kind of a joke, they looked confused.

"That doesn't - Aya, what are you talking about?" Nawaki asked.

"My mother wasn't the only one who went back in time," she said, glancing at Fugaku. "Itachi was with her."

Fugaku started.

"What did you say?"

Ayame took a deep breath and was about to answer when Kakashi cut her off.

"Ayame's telling the truth. Sakura Haruno was my student, part of my genin team."

Everyone turned to look at him.

"As hard as it might be to believe, I was a jonin-sensei in that timeline," he said with a cheerless look in his eyes. "Rin was dead. Obito was… presumed dead." He glanced around. "In fact, everyone in this room except Shikaku was dead." He frowned. "Until the war, anyway."

Minato didn't react to what he said, he had assumed that he had died from what they had already revealed to him and how careful they were with certain details, but his heart tightened at the news that Kushina was also dead.

Shikaku gave a small scoff.

"Nice to know, thank you, Kakashi," he murmured.

"Kakashi?" Kushina frowned. "What are you saying? You - you're from…the future? That's crazy you know!"

Minato listened to the disbelief and attempts at explaining the truth with growing frustration until Fugaku looked at Ayame with accusation in his eyes.

"You always said those records were a joke."

Obito looked between them, eyes wide.

"What records?"

"The ones my father left behind with the ruins of the Stone Tablet," Ayame answered him, not looking away from Fugaku. "It's not as if I  _wanted_  to lie about it, but I had hoped Ryuu was  _dead_  and this wouldn't matter. That this - " she gestured around at all of them, " - would never happen."

Fugaku gave a grunt.

"Whether or not you're telling the truth, what does this have to do with Ryuu? He's already had too much contact with my son. Why haven't we hunted him down yet?" He demanded.

Ayame's eyes narrowed.

"I've been trying to hunt him down for years," she retorted hotly. "I haven't been sitting around and doing nothing!"

"That's what you and Jiraiya have been doing?" Nawaki asked, eyes wide with realisation.

Ayame nodded hesitantly at him. Nawaki looked hurt.

"This is your mission, isn't it?" He asked, coolness in his voice. Ayame cringed back slightly. "This is what you refused to tell the Third about! But you told  _Jiriaya?"_

Minato wondered at the betrayal in the man's voice and questioned what exactly was the relationship between them.

"I'm sorry, Nawaki," Ayame said quietly, apologetically. "I - Mama told Jiraiya when he was a kid. She - she wanted to protect Tsuna."

"Why?" Nawaki demanded.

"Because Sakura was Tsunade's apprentice," Kakashi answered for her.

Nawaki looked at him.

"Tsunade was the Fifth Hokage and Sakura was her apprentice. Sakura and her teammates were the second coming of the Sannin."

Minato narrowed his eyes a little at Kakashi, who had just implied that one of them had been taught by Orochimaru when he knew that Orochimaru had been a traitor to the Leaf in Kakashi's life, just as he was now. Nawaki turned back to Ayame, anger mixing with his clear hurt.

"Then why didn't she tell her!? Why did you keep this a secret from us? I - we would've help you, Aya!" He cried out. "You're  _always_  keeping things hidden, trying to take on the world alone. Look at you, you're trembling. You hate being here and you won't even tell me why you hate this room, more and more secrets!"

Minato saw that she was indeed trembling.

"Ayame, I think it's time to tell them the truth," Obito said quietly. "Both of us."

Shikaku, who had been quietly watching and listening stepped forwards.

"Obito is right," he said. "We have more important things to worry about. Whatever we believe or don't believe, Ryuu Uchiha  _is_  coming and we need to understand why so we can formulate a clear strategy to stop him."

"I'll go first," Obito said quietly. He looked apologetically at Fugaku. "I've had the Mangeyko Sharingan since the day we came back to this time. Did you really believe my stupid story about how I had my Sharingan fully formed at nine?"

Fugaku gave him a long look.

"No. It was a ridiculous story."

Obito nodded.

"The Kannabi Bridge mission is when I activated it, to protect Kakashi... And then I somehow survived after the cave-in, and..."

"Obito, it's all right. You don't have to explain it all," Rin said to him.

He shook his head.

"I was the one that initiated the Fourth Shinobi War. I ... I am the reason that Minato and Kushina died." His face clouded with shame and pain. "I extracted the Nine-Tails from Kushina. I meant to take it's chakra to power the... weapon, but Minato injured me and I had to retreat. The Nine-Tails attacked the village, and to save the Leaf - "

"Minato used the Reaper Death Seal to seal half the chakra in himself, and half in...someone else," Kakashi finished.

Minato and Kushina looked at each other.

"Is that why you reacted to Kushina like you did when you met her again?" Minato asked him quietly.

Kushina put her hand to her stomach, over her seal.

Obito gave a tight nod.

"I'm so sorry."

Kushina closed her eyes.

"The Nine-Tails can feel the Sage of Six Paths chakra in the three of you," she said quietly.

Everyone turned to her. Minato walked to her side when her brow furrowed.

"He's always been so restless whenever you three were around, you know," she murmured. "I - I believe you."

Obito's eyes filled with water.

"I'm so, so sorry." His voice broke. "I didn't - I can't - "

Minato put his hand on Obito's shoulder.

"Don't apologise, Obito," he said. "We're alive. We're not dead."

Kushina looked at him with a smile.

"Yeah, we're still kicking, you know! We're not going to die because you're going to be here protecting us."

Obito swallowed thickly and Minato saw how much he had been suffering from keeping this inside of him. Kakashi and Rin were watching over him. Everyone else was silent and watching their exchange.

"It's kind of my fault too," Kakashi said. "I used to visit Rin's grave and talk to her. I let slip about Kushina's - well, something was happening anyway, and I said it out loud. Obito used to stalk me like a creep and found out."

Obito glared at him.

"I did not stalk you!"

"You kind of did, Obito," Rin said.

"Yeah, you did," Kakashi agreed. "You literally showed up where I was and listened to me talk to the dead. What else is that but stalking?"

"And you used to destroy the flowers he left for me!" Rin said with a little frown.

Minato and Kushina glanced at each other with some amusement, although Minato could see that she was still anxious about what had just been revealed. He was going to have to apologise profusely for hiding this from her later.

Fugaku cleared his throat.

"Are you finished?" He asked, annoyed.

Kakashi, Obito and Rin all gave sheepish looks.

"Sorry, Lord Fugaku," Rin apologised.

He gave a grunt and Minato turned back to look over the group.

"Ryuu Uchiha is the one who did this to me," Rin said, putting her hand over her chest. "He put Obito under a genjutsu, and hurt Kakashi and me with chakra. He wanted Obito's memories."

"And he got them, didn't he?" Nawaki asked.

Obito nodded.

"He saw what happened the night that they died, he knows how I did what I did, and how to do it," he said.

"That's when he'll come to the village," Shikaku stated.

"And how do you know that?" Fugaku asked, frowning. "With the knowledge he apparently obtained from Obito he could come at any moment to extract the Nine-Tails."

Kushina hugged herself protectively.

"He won't," Ayame said in a quiet voice. "He'll come that night because that's when the seal will weaken."

"Weaken?" Kushina asked with worry. "What do you mean?"

Ayame looked at her with a sad smile and looked at Minato.

"Minato-sensei said he didn't want to know the future," Kakashi blurted out. He looked at Minato. "Sensei, it's okay. The reasons why the seal weakened is something you'll find out soon enough, I would guess."

There was an odd look in his eyes and a weird and awkward atmosphere around Rin and Obito. Minato was torn between his worry for what might happen and his desire to live his life without knowing too much that might affect how he responded to future events. He glanced at Kushina whose brow was furrowed with concern.

"It's not something you need to worry about," Rin said, seeing the conflict in their faces. "Please trust us."

Kushina and Minato shared a glance and then reluctantly nodded.

"Okay. But you better not be hiding something important, you know," Kushina said with a frown.

Obito gave her a little sheepish grin. Minato turned back to the others and then looked at Ayame.

"It's time for you to tell us more about your family and why it's come to this point."

Ayame clenched her fist and took a calming breath.

"I didn't see… I didn't see how much he had changed until it was too late," she breathed. "I thought he'd snap out of it, I hoped..." she shook her head. "I hate this room because after he defected...after what he  _did,"_  she shuddered. "I can't even say it aloud. Our father..."

Her voice caught and she closed her eyes. Minato had never seen her look more stripped down of her defences. She swallowed and looked down at her trembling hands and he looked at her seriously, waiting to finally hear everything she'd been hiding.

"The reason why I hate this room, why my skin crawls in here is because after he'd done something  _unforgivable,_  he came back and did it again." She pointed to a spot on the floor. "Right there. That's where he was standing in a pool of blood. Looking at me with his smile..."

She shuddered again and her voice was barely more than a breath.

"This is where my brother murdered Tobirama Senju."


	17. Part Five: The Secrets of the Uchiha

**PART FIVE: THE SECRETS OF THE UCHIHA**

**Chapter Fifteen**

* * *

**July  
12 years after the founding of Konoha**

* * *

The air was warm and the wind light and in the midst of the summer, Konohagakure was surprisingly relaxed, enough so that both Tobirama and Madara had taken time away from their offices for other pursuits: Tobirama to train his genin squad, and Madara to watch over his children while Sakura slaved away in the hospital.

In a mood to challenge the view Tobirama held of his 'prodigy' student Hiruzen Sarutobi, Madara invited him over to his residence. They were outdoors, both in sleeveless shirts, showing their well-muscled and scarred arms. Tobirama leaned against the post on the balcony, while Madara sat on a bench just behind him. They both looked out on the scene in the courtyard with varying expressions.

Izara Uchiha sat on a small wooden box in the middle of the courtyard facing away from them and at the little toy targets a few meters in front of him. He occasionally threw a kunai or shuriken, but it wasn't him that was engaging in target practice. Izara was helping his younger siblings, but it was clear that although they were infants, neither of the kids needed much more than the occasional correction from their older brother.

"How old are they?" Tobirama asked, turning to Madara with a raised eyebrow.

Unseen to Tobirama, who was now looking at Madara, Ayame picked up the discarded wooden sword. It was a little heavy, and she frowned, but then gripped it tightly and began swinging it through the air with remarkable grace. She looked to her brother and began attacking Izara while giggling. He blocked her blows with a laugh on his forearm, telling her she was going to give him bruises.

"Twenty months," Madara responded with a smug and proud smile.

Tobirama turned back to the twins with a look of slight disbelief. Ryuu, though a little clumsy as expected at his age, threw shuriken at the little target with unerring accuracy, hitting the bullseye more often than not and far more than he ought to have been, and in Tobirama's eyes Ayame looked oddly comfortable with a sword in her hands. Tobirama shook his head.

"Of course," he scoffed. "Your kids are genius'."

He didn't just mean the twins, of whom no one could deny were already prodigies. Izara was incredibly bright and analytical, as Tobirama had discovered when Sakura brought him by his office. Judging by the technique he used as he demonstrated to his siblings, if he wasn't ill, he'd have been a great shinobi. Madara gave a small grunt of acknowledgment and then laughed.

"You sound jealous."

Tobirama scoffed again, turning back to Madara with a small glower.

"You're delusional. I've got enough to take care of in the village, I don't need children to bother about."

He felt something soft collide with his head and blinked in surprise to see a small toy shuriken fall to the ground. Both he and Madara looked back to the children, to see Ayame and Ryuu giggling behind their hands, and Izara patting Ryuu's head.

"Good aim, little brother," he smiled. "They'll be good shinobi, won't they, Uncle Tobi?"

Tobirama could only think that they never should've let Sakura and Madara have children, the two of them seemed destined to produce little monsters.

Madara stood and walked down to his children. Tobirama watched as he crouched before them, encouraging them all with a rare smile. A moment later, after cheeky glances between the two of them, the twins attacked their father while Izara watched with eyes of fondness and a little sorrow. Tobirama descended to the courtyard and offered Izara a hand. Izara looked up at Tobirama in surprise, who stared impassively back at the boy. A small, happy smile spread over Izara's lips as he took Tobirama's hand and was helped to his feet.

"Where take Iza!?"

Ryuu, apparently untangled from his father, had run over to Tobirama and his little hands hit Tobirama's calves. Ryuu glared up at him accusingly, and Tobirama glared back down.

"Away from a brat like you," he replied.

"Not brat!" Ryuu shouted.

Tobirama scoffed and Izara bent down to Ryuu.

"Lord Tobirama just wants to talk to me, Ryuu. It's okay."

Ryuu pouted and folded his arms over his chest, sending Tobirama a glare that clearly stated that if he hurt Izara he'd die. Tobirama was unsure whether he should take it seriously or not.

"Aya, Ryuu. Come train with me."

Ryuu's eyes brightened and he turned to his father, Tobirama and Izara forgotten - or so Tobirama thought. Before Tobirama picked up Izara and put him on his shoulders, he caught sight of Ryuu glancing at them with a frown. Izara, catching the look, laughed lightly.

"He's protective," Tobirama murmured.

"He's a good brother," Izara replied softly. "Are you taking me somewhere special?"

"No, we're just going on patrol," Tobirama replied.

"Thank you."

Tobirama heard the happiness in Izara's voice, and he knew it was because these were the only moments that Izara would get to experience what being a shinobi of the village was like. With his health, he'd never have the chance.

"Anytime, kid," Tobirama replied gruffly.

The kid had eyes too similar to Sakura, all wide and endearing, it was making him feel protective.

* * *

**Academy Graduation Day**   
**17 years after the founding of Konoha**

* * *

_They're too young._

It was the only thing Sakura could think as she watched her two children walk up to the stage and be presented with their graduation certificates. They were so small, dwarfed by the other children and adults around them.

She gnawed her lip nervously. Ayame and Ryuu were only five with not even a full year at the Academy under their belt before she and Madara had been told there was no point to them even being in the academy. Even Kakashi had been six when he graduated, Sakura couldn't help but ruefully wonder how her own kids would turn out, considering her only other comparable figure was a brilliant albeit troubled man. Despite her worries, Sakura was filled with pride. Those were her children; her brilliant, beautiful children, who never ceased to amaze her. She only wished Madara could have been here to see them, but he was the commander of the forces at the front, fending off Iwagakure, and didn't have the option to return.

Izara reached over and took her hand. She glanced down at her son in surprise and then in gratitude, giving his hand a little squeeze before she looked back at Ayame and Ryuu. They stood together, two small bobs of long black hair, unmistakably Uchiha in their dark clothes with their dark features. Ryuu caught her eye and beamed a bright smile at her, waving a little shyly at her. She smiled and waved back. Ryuu disliked crowds and having so many people staring at him (he took after his father in that respect), so Sakura knew must have been feeling overwhelmingly happy and proud to wave and grin in public like he was.

As much as Sakura wished she could just keep them in the academy for longer, even if just so they could socialize with the other village children, she couldn't deny there was no point to them staying. They simply weren't being challenged, not to mention that they were sneaking out of the classrooms all the time, and Ayame had taken to following around Tobirama. Sakura and Madara tried to keep their lives more balanced, but all either of the twins had ever cared about since before they could walk was being shinobi. They ate, slept, studied and trained. Both of them were incredibly diligent, and she couldn't deny them doing something they were so passionate about. They'd inherited both her and Madara's stubborn streaks, and Sakura had never felt sorrier for Kakashi for having to put up with Team 7 since her twins were just as demanding.

Izara, her precious son, was her saving grace. He made sure they took breaks and played with other children, he reported back to Sakura or Madara any problems the twins had. He looked out for them, and the love he showered the twins with was repaid in kind. They'd quickly caught on to the fact that Izara couldn't play like other children, and adapted their own time spent together. Izara was so smart that he'd been half the reason why the twins knew all the academy curriculum before they even got there.

Sakura was beyond happy that her three children adored one another. She and Madara had made sure that they did their best to ensure they showed the same love and respect to all of them, with making sure the didn't end up with a Fugaku-Itachi-Sasuke dynamic firmly stuck in the back of Sakura's head. But, as she watched her children descend the pavilion and listened to Hashirama give some speech she barely heard, Sakura could only worry. The First Shinobi War had begun almost six months ago, and her children were shinobi. Genin, and safe in the village, but she couldn't help but feel afraid.

* * *

**17 years after the founding of Konohagakure**

* * *

Sakura looked up from her mountain of paperwork with a scowl at whoever it was that was interrupting her.

"Is this a bad time?"

She reigned in her bad mood when she saw the nervous smile and slightly anxious stance of Hiruzen Sarutobi standing in her office doorway.

She sighed and shook her head.

"Just another day at the office," she muttered. "Come on in, Hiruzen."

She'd never really get used to calling him that, she honestly couldn't wait for the day he'd be named Hokage, it would be a relief. He closed the door behind him and stood before her desk. He was 17 now, and a very distinguished shinobi already. She'd never been able to fully appreciate just how strong a shinobi he was when she was younger. Seeing him as a young man was truly a privilege. Hearing Tobirama gush - actually gush - about him was also amusing as anything else she'd ever heard.

"Would you like some help?" He asked her politely.

She raised an eyebrow at him.

"Do you really want to go through the logistical data of resupplying the medics in the field and restocking our supplies to make sure we don't all die in this war?"

He chuckled.

"Not really, no."

"Didn't think so," she replied with a smile. "So what can I do for you?"

"Lord First sent me here for a check-up."

Sakura scrunched up her nose.

"Do you really have to come and see me for that?" She questioned, confused. "You're not secretly dying are you?"

He chuckled again.

"He also sent me because I've been assigned to be the sensei for Ryuu and Ayame, while I'm not away," he said.

"That makes much more sense," Sakura said with a little sigh. She gave him a weary smile. "Why don't you take a seat and we can talk more comfortably. You don't have to be so formal around me, you know, it's not like we're strangers."

He merely smiled.

"So, is there anything I should know? It's… not normal to have five-year-old genin."

Sakura gave a wry smile.

"No, it isn't."

She gave a sigh. As a mother, she wanted nothing more to protect them, especially since they were at war. She would not allow her children to go to battle, not for years at least. The battlefield was no place for a child barely old enough to reach the sink. Not that she was concerned that would happen. Tobi, Hashirama and Madara were all determined to keep children off the battlefield. They knew what it was like and they all felt the same way: never again. The children were the future, sending them off to die was not an option. Still, as a shinobi, and as a leader of the village, children who showed potential like Ayame and Ryuu were needed, and needed to be trained.

"They're incredibly smart and are enamoured with the shinobi life, but…" She trailed off and shook her head. "They're only five. I don't want them to burn out, not as their mother, and not a village leader."

"I understand," Hiruzen said, his face thoughtful. "Lord Hokage told me the same thing. He suggested that our training be more like playtime."

"You'll have to be creative," Sakura said, leaning back in her chair.

"What about their personalities?" Hiruzen asked.

Sakura felt a warm smile on her face.

"Well. Around strangers, Ryuu is quiet and observant, a little shy. He'll try to figure you out before he decides to open up. That said, once he does, he isn't afraid to make his opinions known. He doesn't like people watching him either. He's very serious about becoming a great shinobi. Ayame is more open, she likes to tease and laugh and play. She never lets her sword out of her sight." Sakura shook her head. "Both of them have large chakra reserves which are only going to continue to grow, probably to similar sizes as Madara. Ayame has an innate ability to supress her chakra to the point where if you didn't see her, you wouldn't know she as there. Even Madara has trouble sensing her."

Hiruzen's eyes widened slightly.

"That's incredible."

Sakura hummed in agreement.

"I'm sure you'll find this out, but Ryuu is the cunning one and Ayame carries out his plans. They like sneak attacks," she said, eying him with amusement.

He gave a little smile.

"Thanks for the warning," he said.

"Ah," Sakura said, sitting forward. "This is a selfish request, but Izara… would you be okay with him accompanying them to training? He won't try and interrupt you, he'd just be watching over them. For me, and Madara. I'll have to go to the front soon and they'll be here without us," she said, her voice unhappy, thinking about leaving her kids here.

"I'm sure that will be fine. It might be easier for them to trust me if he's there," Hiruzen replied. "I understand they're very close."

"They are." She glanced down at the paperwork. "I'm sorry, I really need to get this over to Tobirama as soon as possible."

He stood and gave her a short bow.

"Thank you for your time, Lady Sakura," he murmured to her.

"Good luck," she said to him. "If you're looking for them, they should be at home."

He left and Sakura swallowed, closing her eyes for a moment. She tired to clear her head of worry and refocus on the work that needed to be done. Her children were in capable hands. They were going to be fine. Totally, and completely fine.

 

 

"Aya, you're so annoying!" Ryuu grumbled. "I can do it myself."

Ayame frowned.

"But your grip is wrong!" She insisted. "It'll hurt if you don't hold it properly. Papa said so!"

Ryuu scowled.

"I said I don't need your help."

Ayame pouted, her hands on her hips.

"You're such a meanie! Gimme back my sword!"

She held her hand out expectantly but Ryuu looked at it and then away.

"No."

Izara gave a tired sigh as he listened to the bickering. They had been fighting more often which was good in some ways, they were expressing themselves more, but it was a little annoying.

"Ryuu!"

Ayame swiped at the sword, and he pulled it out of her reach. Luckily it was a blunted blade, little more than a toy, but Izara knew that if Ryuu didn't give Aya back her sword - the thing she loved the most in the world - there was going to be a meltdown. Ryuu was just being stubborn; he liked to work things out on his own and Aya liked to give advice, which could be a volatile combination. Too embroiled in their own little fight, her brother and sister didn't notice the visitor that had arrived at the gate. Ryuu frowned a little, and then realized who it was. His eyes widened slightly and he wondered what Hiruzen Sarutobi was doing at their house. He was a really important and powerful jonin, and he was really young too. Izara caught his eye, and Hiruzen gave him a small smile and nod. Ayame picked up a stone from the courtyard and threw it at Ryuu, who dodged it with an annoyed glare.

"Give it back!" Aya said, becoming stressed.

"Just go away, Aya. I'm practicing!"

Ryuu swung the sword at her and Ayame jumped backward.

"That's it!" She growled and launched herself at Ryuu.

Izara sighed as they got into a wrestling match. Hiruzen Sarutobi made his way over to Izara and took a seat beside him, still unnoticed by the fighting twins.

"Hello. You must be Izara. I'm Hiruzen," he greeted him.

"Hello, it's nice to meet you," Izara answered, keeping an eye on his siblings.

"I've just come from speaking with your mother," Hiruzen said.

Izara turned to him, interested.

"I've been assigned as the Jonin-sensei for Ayame and Ryuu," he explained.

Izara's mouth gaped in surprise and then he smiled.

"Thank you for coming to greet us," he said politely.

"Iza?" Ryuu's concerned voice was loud.

Izara looked over at him and saw him pushing Ayame down to the ground, who grunted with annoyance.

"Iza, who is that?" Ryuu asked loudly, his protective instincts acting up again.

"He's protective," Izara murmured to Hiruzen.

"Ah, I see."

Izara turned to his brother and sister, who immediately stiffened and glanced guiltily at each other, knowing that he was giving them his 'I'm disappointed in you both' look. Ayame scrambled to her feet and smoothed down her dress, and Ryuu stalked over to Izara, looking at the ground. Ayame took the chance to steal back her sword from his grip and ran over to Izara.

"Introduce yourselves to our guest," Izara said to them.

Ayame flushed red and smoothed her hair.

"Hello! I'm Ayame Uchiha," she announced in a slightly too-loud voice, a bright smile on her face.

Izara stared at Ryuu, who was looking at Hiruzen with reservation.

"I'm Ryuu."

Ayame elbowed him.

 _"Politely,"_  she hissed.

He gave her a little glare.

"It's nice to meet you, I'm Ryuu Uchiha, welcome to our home," Ryuu grumbled.

Izara fought back a smile.

"I'm very happy to meet the two of you, Ayame, Ryuu. My name is Hiruzen Sarutobi."

Ayame gasped.

"You're one of Uncle Tobi's students!" She squealed happily. "What are you doing here?"

"Did Uncle Tobi send you?" Ryuu asked him.

Hiruzen shook his head.

"No, Lord Hokage did."

Ayame and Ryuu glanced at each other, and then at Izara, who gave them an encouraging nod.

"I'm your new sensei."

Ryuu's eyes widened and then he folded his arms over his chest and looked Hiruzen up and down. Ayame clapped her hands together.

"Then let's go train!" She said.

Izara chuckled when Hiruzen seemed at a loss.

"Aya, I think today is just about introductions. Why don't you and Ryuu tell Sarutobi-sensei what you like do to?"

Ryuu looked over at Izara, seeming a little crestfallen.

"But, why can't we just keep training with you?" He asked in a quiet voice, making Izara's chest tighten. "You're way smarter than half the shinobi out there," he huffed, turning a little glare at Hiruzen.

"Ah, I have an idea," Hiruzen said. "Lady Sakura said that you're really good at sneaking around."

Ayame grinned.

"So why don't we play hide-and-seek?"

Ryuu snorted.

"That's a kids game."

Izara resisted the urge to remind Ryuu that he was a kid. Hiruzen smiled.

"So let's make it more interesting, shall we?"

Despite himself, Ryuu did look interested.

"Are we going to bet something? Mama says betting isn't good, but Uncle Hashi bets all the time!" Ayame seemed excited.

Hiruzen nodded and Izara wondered what he was going to bet.

"If I can't find you both before the sunsets, then you can keep training with Izara. But if I do, you have to accept me as your teacher."

Ryuu's eyes widened and Ayame gave her lips a twist and then nodded.

"Okay!"

"We can go  _anywhere?"_  Ryuu asked carefully.

"Within the Uchiha District," Hiruzen replied.

Ryuu and Ayame shared a glance and then nodded. Izara gave them a smile, and Ayame waved at Hiruzen.

"See you!" She called, as she ran out of the courtyard, her sword in her hand.

Ryuu stood for a moment, hesitating. He looked between Hiruzen and Izara, and then ran to Izara, gave him a quick hug with Izara returned with warmth, and then ran off after Ayame.

"Be safe!" Izara called out to him.

Hiruzen sat down beside Izara, who gave him a worried look.

"They're really good at hiding, that was a silly promise," he said with a frown.

Hiruzen chuckled.

"It's all right, I prepared myself before I made the deal," he said cryptically.

"Well, in any case, I can't teach them. I'm not a shinobi," he said bitterly, bringing his knees to his chest.

He felt the eyes of the young man on him.

"The world is filled with many different kinds of people, some shinobi and some not. Not being a shinobi doesn't make you worth less than those who are, just like being a shinobi doesn't mean you are worth more than those who are not. I don't think that either your brother or sister would agree with what you said to me."

Izara gave a small grunt.

"Your mother is going to be going to the front soon," he said.

Izara felt his body sink.

"I know."

"And I'll be going as well. Sometimes for extended periods of time. So I need someone here to make sure Ayame and Ryuu are keeping up with their training, but more importantly, to remind them that they are just kids," he smiled at Izara. "What do you say? Would you like to help me train them?"

Izara swallowed and felt his mood pick up.

"You're not just saying that because you feel sorry for me? Or because my mother asked you to include me?"

He gave a breathy chuckle and shook his head.

"You know, I'm only about six years older than you. It's not like I know how to take care of kids either," he gave a rueful smile and Izara felt himself relax. "Honestly, it'd be really helpful to have you around." He scratched the back of his neck and laughed.

Izara lifted his head and lowered his legs, and stood. He bowed, bending at the waist.

"Thank you, Sarutobi-sensei," he said.

Sarutobi-sensei stood and Izara raised himself. He felt a large hand on his head, and then his hair was ruffled.

"Glad to have you on board," Sarutobi-sensei said with a happy grin. "Now I'm going to go find your brother and sister."

Izara nodded and smiled brightly, feeling grateful and content.

* * *

**November 17  
22 years after Konoha's founding**

* * *

"Happy birthday, Ryuu. Happy Birthday, Ayame."

Izara smiled at them, and they smiled back, but there was a shadow behind their smiles.

"Mama and papa?" Ayame asked him, hopefully. "Sarutobi-sensei?"

"At the front," Izara replied sadly, shaking his head. "I'm sorry. They tried."

Ayame nodded sadly, and Ryuu looked away, his arms folded over his chest and pouting.

"We should be there," he muttered.

Izara raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, and two nine-year-olds are going to change the course of the war?"

"We could do something," Ayame said, looking equally disappointed. "We're just as good as half the village jonin out there."

Izara patted both their heads, ruffling their hair and earning indignant squarks from them.

"Or you could celebrate your birthday with your big brother," Izara grinned.

Ayame smoothed down her hair.

"It took me ages to make it not frizzy," she mumbled annoyed.

"You're still beautiful, Aya," Izara said fondly.

Ayame blushed and smiled.

"Whatever," she said.

Ryuu scoffed.

"Beautiful? Please."

Ayame turned a scowl on him.

"We look the same, idiot. You just called yourself ugly."

Ryuu rolled his eyes.

"You're such a brat."

"You're the same age," Izara said.

"And how old are you? One hundred?" Ryuu snapped.

Izara raised an eyebrow.

"I'm almost fifteen as you know very well. Are you really going to fight on your birthday?"

Ryuu and Ayame shared a look.

"Fight?" Ayame echoed.

Slowly, a grin spread over Ryuu's face, and Ayame's eyes twinkled as they looked back to Izara, who was backing away warily.

"You want to fight?" Ayame questioned, sounding far more innocent than she looked.

"Definitely not," Izara replied hastily.

They grinned and then attacked Izara, causing him to fall back on the floor. They laughed and giggled together until Izara was caught by a coughing fit. Ayame and Ryuu froze for a moment before Ayame rushed to get a glass of water, and Ryuu patted circles around Izara's back like he'd seen their mother do. It subsided within a minute, and Izara gave them apologetic looks.

"Sorry," he coughed and cleared his throat.

Ryuu, surprising Izara, leaned forward and rested his forehead on the space between Izara's chest and shoulder.

"Don't apologize," he said, sounding upset. "It's not your fault."

Izara opened his arm for Ayame, who came and sat beside him. The glass of water on the floor next to them. The three of them sat together, hugging each other tightly, for a few quiet moments before Ayame picked up the glass and handed it to Izara.

"I'll find a cure," Ryuu sniffed, sitting back.

Izara gave a tight smile.

"Don't you think if there was a cure mama would have found it?"

They were all quiet at that. They knew she would have, they knew how good a medic she was.

"We don't want you to die," Ayame whimpered, gripping onto Izara's shirt.

Izara bit his lip, holding back the words that would just be unfair for them to hear: that he didn't want to die either. There wasn't a point to lingering on those kinds of thoughts, he had realized that early on, since all they did was drag him into a dark place of selfishness and loneliness. He didn't want to die, and neither did his family want him too, so what was the point of complaining?

"This is no way to celebrate your birthday," he said instead. "Aya, why don't you go and see if Aunt Suri is home, and Kaga or Sakiko?"

She looked reluctant.

"But… we just want to be here with you," she said slowly.

Ryuu looked up, a slight frown.

"Why do you call Kagami 'Kaga' but don't call Sakiko 'Kiko?'" He asked. "I heard you call her that when you two were alone."

Izara stilled.

"When did you hear that?"

There was a mischievous glint in Ryuu's eyes, and he glanced at his sister, who grinned.

" _Iza loooooooves Kiko_ ," Ayame sung as she skipped away.

Ryuu stepped back as well.

"You just want to see Kiko, don't you?" He teased and grinned, looking equally cheeky. "That's why you told Aya to get her!"

Izara flushed red.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said hotly.

Ayame and Ryuu giggled and skipped around the kitchen, and spent the evening of their ninth birthday teasing their beloved elder brother about his secret girlfriend, Sakiko Uchiha, the war and their absent parents almost forgotten.

* * *

**May**   
**24 years after Konoha's founding**

* * *

Ryuu stood on the road, looking down at Izara, who sat alone at the end of the pier on the lake below. He folded his arms over her chest and swallowed the lump in his throat. It had been getting more and more obvious that Izara was getting more and more unwell. He looked thinner than he ever had before, and Ryuu was getting afraid that he wouldn't last the year. His older brother just looked so small. It wasn't supposed to be like that. Izara had always been there, no matter what he was feeling, he had been there for him and Aya. Teaching them, taking care of them, and they did the same for him. The three of them were a team. Their parents were so busy with the village and the war, even though Ryuu knew they couldn't help it, he still felt a glimmer of resentment for them leaving so often. How could they, when Izara needed them?

Ryuu turned away, clenching his fists tightly. He was going to be eleven this year, he needed to study harder. He'd been learning everything he could about medical ninjutsu. Maybe mama had missed something. Just as he was about to leave for the library, he felt the familiar chakra of his sister coming at him quickly. He looked up the road and saw her running to him.

"Aya?"

A moment later, she was there. She stopped in front of him, hands on her knees, panting hard. When she looked up, he saw that her eyes filled with tears. Panic gripped Ryuu. Someone was dead, he knew it immediately.

"What is it?" He demanded.

"It… It's Lord Hokage," she panted, her voice wavering. "He's dead."

Ayame started to cry and Ryuu stared at her, uncomprehendingly and shook his head.

"That's not…that's not possible."

It wasn't. Lord Hokage was the best shinobi in the world. He could heal himself. There was no way he could have died. Ayame continued to sob.

"Mama… Mama sent a message. She's coming home. Ryuu… Hashi is dead, he's dead."

And he knew she was telling the truth. Ryuu felt like the world tilted off its axis. His vision dyed black and read.

Hashirama Senju was dead.

Ayame gasped.

"Ryuu, your Sharingan," she breathed, her voice hiccuping.

Ryuu blinked, feeling a wash of tiredness.

Ayame cried harder and threw her arms around him. Ryuu felt tears pour from his eyes and he hugged her back. They gripped each other tightly, and Ryuu made a vow that he'd never let anything happen to her. The war was taking away everyone. But not mama, not papa, and not Aya. He couldn't let that happen. His throat tightened.

He had to find a way to save Izara. _He had to._

* * *

**July**   
**24 years after Konoha's founding**

* * *

The stone face of Tobirama Senju was close to completion almost two months after the death of his elder brother. The village was in mourning, but Izara understood that his mother, father and Tobirama and Mito were likely even more devastated by his passing than the combined feelings of the village.nKonoha and all its shinobi needed to know there wouldn't be any loss of focus or will, and although the great stone face of the new Hokage was only symbolic, it seemed to provide some comfort that the village would keep moving forwards.

It was odd to him that it might have been his fathers face carved into the mountain. Kagami had said that it was either going to be him or Tobirama. A lot of people wanted Madara to take Hashirama's place, since the two of them were considered equals and such stalwart figures in the village. When Izara asked his mother why Madara hadn't accepted the position, she had given him a small, sad smile.

"He wanted to be Hokage once, but your father isn't the same man he once was. Tobirama was always destined to be the second Hokage, and he'll do a very good job of it."

It was a cryptic response, and Izara knew better than to pry any further. He had realised earlier in his life that his parents had a lot of secrets. But that wasn't the only reason he didn't ask, it was because his mother looked tired, weary and drawn. Hashirama's death had affected her deeply.

Izara sat atop the stone face of Hashirama. He closed his eyes, and smiled a little as he listened to the bickering of his best friend, Kagami, and his sister Sakiko. It was rare that Kagami was in the village as he was part of Tobirama's Escort Unit, along with the other elite shinobi. But only a week or so ago, his son was born and he'd been able to return for a short time. Izara took a deep breath, trying not to let either of them see the grimace of pain as he did.

"I think I'm going to die soon," Izara said quietly, opening his eyes.

He knew they heard him. They stopped talking, and the world around them was filled with nothing but the sound of the wind and village far below.

"Yeah, you don't look so good," Kagami said with a strained smile and forced chuckle.

Izara turned to him.

"Still better looking than you," he smiled.

It wasn't true at all. Izara was pale, with blue and purple bruises under his eyes, sunken cheeks, and a body so thin he may as well have been a skeleton. Kagami, on the other hand, was the kind of person that drew others to him. He'd always been more like Hashirama than Madara: charismatic and open to all. His hair was curled like his fathers, and it was a little lighter than Sakiko's raven-black hair.

Sakiko turned her face away from them both. Kagami looked at her, and then back at Izara, who swallowed lightly. Kagami let out a little sigh.

"I'll go see if Hiruzen is home," he said quietly.

Izara tried to smile, but he couldn't find it in him to be grateful. He knew Kagami didn't exactly approve but that he wouldn't deny Izara a chance to be happy, and he knew that Sakiko wouldn't listen to him no matter what he said. Kagami disappeared in a puff of smoke. Now alone with Sakiko, Izara reached for her hand. He felt her flinch, and almost pull away, but she didn't. He felt like her hand was fire, but it was only because he was always cold.

"Kiko," he whispered. "Please look at me."

Sakiko was not and never had been the kind of girl that fawned over boys. She was strong-willed and strong-minded, doing what she wanted and never letting something she wanted out of her grasp. Izara didn't know why she loved him. He wasn't strong like her. Caring for him was the least Sakiko thing she could have done. He was sick and dying and he always had been, there was no if only when. Still, despite those insurmountable odds, the two of them had grown up side-by-side and grown up in love. And Izara loved her. He loved her more than he ever thought possible. He loved her strength, her wit, her determination. He thought that she was adorable, even when she was all frowns and glares, and radiant when she was all smiles and laughter. He loved that she was far clumsier than she let on, and she'd never tell anyone that she adored flowers.

She sniffed, her face still turned away, but she squeezed his hand and that was enough for Izara. There was something he wanted - no, something he needed - to ask her. One thing he wanted before he died.

"Will you come by the house tonight?" He asked quietly. "Papa is going to take Mama and the twins to see Tobirama."

Sakiko finally turned to face him. Her eyes were wet with unshed tears, and slightly wide. She didn't misunderstand what he was asking.

"But - you can't - "

He gave her a little smile.

"I spoke with mama, and she said she'll give me a type of…boosting treatment," he said wryly. "Papa joked that at least I'd die happy."

Sakiko's eyes fully widened at that, and she blushed a deep scarlet and lightly punched his arm before ducking her head in embarrassment and anger.

"You can't die…during…" she murmured red-faced. "I'd be…mortified."

He knew that wasn't the word she wanted to say, but was glad she didn't say heartbroken. She snapped her gaze back to him with an indignant glare.

"I can't believe you told your parents! I'll never be able to look at them now."

Izara grinned and shrugged. He shifted over to her and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She hesitated before leaning into him.

"I've learned it's better not to keep secrets from my parents," he said quietly.

They sat and stared out at the village for a while in silence.

"Are you sure?" She whispered, looking up at him nervously.

He nodded. He was sure, he'd never been more sure of anything in his life.

"Just once I want to love you properly," he replied, feeling almost fervent as he spoke, wanting her to understand what he was feeling. "I've loved you, Sakiko Uchiha, I've loved you for seventeen years, but never properly."

Sakiko looked up, tears falling from her eyes.

"You idiot," she sighed, smiling tightly. "There is no 'properly' in love. It just is as it is."

Izara kissed her gently, and felt her hands clutch at his coat.

"I love you too, you know?"

He nodded.

"I know."

He looked back out at the village and then up at the falling sun.

"Can you take me down?" He asked her. "I need to rest."

She nodded and he allowed himself to be carried on her back as she jumped down to the village and took him home.

* * *

**October**   
**24 years after Konoha's founding**

* * *

Izara went to bed with a strange feeling in his chest. There was pain but there was also a sense of numbing. That day, he'd had more energy than ever before, and in the back of his mind, he knew he had to make the most of it.

He thought of his family as he lay down. Of his beautiful, compassionate and fiercely strong mother. Of his father, who was stern but filled with so much affection he was awkward when displaying it. Of Ryuu, who was so incredibly strong in mind and spirit, and felt a sliver of guilt and regret for not being able to have been a better more active brother to him. Of Ayame, who was growing more and more into a fierce and beautiful shinobi, and a better young girl, and felt that same sense of regret that he couldn't have done more for his siblings.

He then thought of those who he loved and finished by thinking of the woman he loved. Sakiko was the best thing that he'd ever had in his life, the most challenging and painful, and yet the most rewarding and beautiful. He drifted off to sleep, dreaming of the night of passion he shared with her.

A few minutes after midnight, Izara Uchiha took his final breath, and Sakura woke up crying.

* * *

Ryuu rubbed at his eyes as Izara's coffin was lowered into the ground. He sniffed and grunted with frustration as the irritation refused to subside. Ayame clutched his other hand tightly.

"Ryuu, honey?" Sakura glanced down.

Ryuu grimaced. "My eyes," he groaned softly.

"Sakura, look." Madara's voice was low and worried.

Ryuu blinked and scrunched his nose, and his vision blurred. He felt his eyes well and tears fall over his lids and down his face. There was a sudden commotion around him and Ayame. Ryuu blinked, wondering why the people were looking at them, not focusing on Izara... Izara who was in the ground. Izara who was dead!

"Your eyes…" Sakura said, looking at her children worried.

Ryuu frowned and put his hands to his eyes, and wiped away the tears. He pulled his hands away and saw they were bloody. He stared at the blood uncomprehendingly.

"Inverted colours," a voice whispered somewhere around them.

He looked at Ayame, who was staring at him with Sharingan eyes.

"Ryuu, your Sharingan…" she said.

"You too," he whispered.

She shook her head.

"Mangeyko," his father said, grief and pain on his face.

Ryuu blink in surprise.

Ryuu's three tomoe had become black circles with red centers, with lines that connected them, forming a triangle. The rest of his iris wasn't red, like a regular Sharingan, it was black.

Five weeks before their eleventh birthday, at their beloved elder brothers funeral, Ayame activated her fully matured Sharingan and Ryuu Uchiha gained the Mangekyo Sharingan. He cemented his place in Uchiha and Konoha history as a young prodigy and then proceeded to collapse from chakra exhaustion.


	18. Part Five: Secrets of the Uchiha

**Part Five: Secrets of the Uchiha**

**Chapter 16**

* * *

**11 years old**

* * *

Ayame flinched every time she heard something hit the wall with a loud thud. She could hear Ryuu's sobs and grunts and muted screams. She sat on the floor outside his bedroom, knees hugged tightly to her chest, her eyes scrunched tightly closed as she listened to his suffering, unable to comfort or help him. She knew he'd only lash out at her. She couldn't believe it, everything felt wrong and numb and strange and just…

 _"Izara,"_  she sobbed.

Ayame's shoulder shook, and her throat hurt and her eyes burned. She felt numb and like she was going to explode. It felt like a horrible dream, but all too real. Her brother… Izara was gone. It wasn't as if she didn't know it was going to happen. They all knew it would, she'd seen how thin he'd gotten, how much more tired he seemed, how much more affectionate he'd become. But how could you really prepare for someone you loved dying? Even if they were shinobi and death was so common and normal... she wasn't prepared. She clenched her fists so tightly that her fingernails dug into the soft flesh of her hands and broke the skin.

She felt hands wrap around her body, pushing their way under her knees and she opened her eyes to see her father lifting her up, his face pained and eyes wet. She allowed him to pick her up, like she was little again, and threw her arms around his neck, burying her face in his shoulder. He gently rubbed her back as he walked through the house.

"Papa, it hurts," she whimpered.

"I know, Aya," Madara murmured.

She sniffed and held him tightly.

"Where's mama?"

She felt him take a deep breath.

"She's resting," he answered. "Will you stay with her for a while?"

Ayame sniffed again. She wanted her mama, but she was scared of something. Scared that maybe her mama wouldn't want her there. Scared that her mama would wish it were her instead of Izara that was gone. But Ayame was a shinobi, and she was the daughter of the strongest kunoichi and Madara Uchiha. She wasn't going to run away because she was scared.

"Okay," she answered. "Ryuu…"

Madara gave a small grunt.

"It's okay, Aya. I'll take care of your brother."

Ayame pulled back.

"Are you okay, papa?"

Madara gave her a tired smile and set her down on the ground. He crouched in front of her.

"We are Uchiha, Ayame. Do you know what our eyes mean?"

She shook her head.

"It means that no matter the hardships we face, the Uchiha endure and move forward," he told her. He laid a hand on his heart. "They are proof that, despite what opinions other clans might have about us, we feel deeply. Grieve for your brother, and honour him by living for him."

Ayame looked at him for a moment before she sniffed deeply, wiped away the tears on her face and rubbed her nose. She took a deep breath and he gave her a tight, sad smile.

"Go be a good girl and comfort your mother, Aya," Madara said to her.

He stood and left her in the corridor outside their bedroom. Ayame heard silence through the door and opened it cautiously.

"Mama?" She called out.

The was a soft rustling of the blankets, and Ayame saw Sakura turned to look at her. Ayame felt her chest flip when she saw the red rims around her eyes.

"Aya? Are you okay?" Sakura asked, her voice hoarse.

Ayame nodded. With shaking legs, she walked over to Sakura and slipped into the bed. Her mother wrapped Ayame in her arms.

"I love you, mama," she whispered.

She felt Sakura lay a kiss on her forehead.

"And I love you."

Ayame hugged her tightly.

"When will it stop hurting?" She whispered.

She felt her mothers body tremble.

"I don't know, Aya. But one day, one day it will hurt a little less, and the memories will become happier to think about."

Ayame hoped that day would come soon.

* * *

It was like losing Izuna all over again, but somehow it was worse.

Izuna's death had been traumatic and horrible, but watching his son die slowly for seventeen years was something worse than dying himself. Madara swallowed thickly, putting aside his thoughts of his dead son for the one still living. Ryuu and Izara had reminded him so much of what he and Izuna had been like. Ryuu worshipped Izara and having his Mangeyko awaken at his death was proof of how much he loved him and was now suffering for it. Ryuu had only just been recovering from Hashirama's death where he'd awakened his first evolution of the Sharingan. To have evolved it again so soon… Madara felt a knot of worry in his stomach, knowing full well how much of an effect the transformation had on the psyche.

He could hear the pain in Ryuu's grunts and cries as he stood outside Ryuu's bedroom door, where Aya had been crying just moments earlier. Madara hesitated, unsure of what to do or say. Ryuu was too like him, too headstrong, too likely to lash out because of the intensity of his feelings. But there was enough of Sakura in him to make Madara uncertain of how to approach him. Ryuu and Ayame both carried some resentment towards both him and Sakura for being away so much because of the war, although Ayame was quicker to forgive them for it than Ryuu was.

Madara opened the door to see Ryuu sitting on the ground, leaning against his bed throwing shuriken at the wall. He stood there silently before he closed the door. Ryuu lifted his arm and the shuriken landed with a thud, embedded in the wooden wall.

"What do you want?" Ryuu muttered, his voice was hoarse from crying.

Madara cleared his throat.

"I had five brothers once," he murmured.

Ryuu's arm froze in mid-air. He slowly lowered it and Madara walked to sit on his bed, facing the wall, close but giving Ryuu some space.

"All of them except Izuna were killed in the fighting between the Uchiha and Senju clans. I made a vow to protect Izuna with my life. He was my responsibility." Madara felt a pang of nostalgia at the memories of their childhood, away from the battlefield. "Your mother and her comrade had been hunting a monster that wanted to destroy the world when she found Hashirama and me mid-battle. She saved Izuna's life and then, months later, tried to protect all of us from the monster. But he was after me and in the end, he took both my brother and me, and I was helpless as he killed Izuna in front of me."

"Why are you telling me this?" Ryuu asked, his voice trembling. "You want me to know you understand what I'm feeling? Is that it?" Madara frowned at the anger and bitterness in his voice. "I don't care what happened to your brother. If you wanted to unload your guilt for not being here for us, being here more for Izara, then get out. I don't want to hear it!"

Madara took a deep breath.

"Ryuu, that's not — "

Ryuu jumped to his feet and turned to glare at Madara, his eyes spinning with his Sharingan. Madara stood and stared down at him, and Ryuu flinched slightly but didn't back away.

"Deactivate that now," Madara ordered.

Ryuu bared his teeth and Madara's eyes narrowed.

"If you act on your rage and grief and pain, you will walk down a path you'll regret." Madara's voice was hard. "Show your brother more respect."

Ryuu flinched backward, took a hissing breath in, and closed his eyes. His Sharingan faded to black when he opened them again.

"Get out," he growled. "Just get out."

Madara did as Ryuu said, feeling the heavy weight that already laid on his heart grow heavier still. He made his way to the courtyard, and under the moonlight, stood on the verandah and stared at the place under the tree in the middle of the courtyard, where Izara had spent his days leaning against the trunk, surrounded by books, smiling at the twins.

Madara stared at that place. His eyes were dry and he wasn't going to cry, but he felt a void inside him where his feelings rolled and trashed. He should have been used to death, but he had never experienced the death of his own flesh and blood in this way before. He clenched his fist. He knew he couldn't stay and grieve with his family. Hashirama was gone. Tobirama was trying to hold it together. The world was at war and Madara needed to be alongside his comrades, protecting other peoples sons and daughters. Just for now, just for a day or two, he could stay here with Sakura and Aya and Ryuu. He clenched his jaw, pain shooting through his heart. Just for a little while, he'd grieve his son with the rest of his family and then he'd fight the world to stop feeling it.

* * *

"What's are you doing?"

Ryuu's eyes narrowed when his mother jumped, startled, guilty and turned to him with surprised eyes. Her hands moved over to hide whatever she was writing. He caught glimpse of a book.

"Ryuu, you frightened me," she said, smiling to cover her fright. She swallowed. "I'm not doing much of anything, really. Is something the matter?"

Ryuu could see the tension in her eyes, and that she had been crying again. He couldn't shake the feeling that she was hiding something. Slowly he shook his head.

"Nothing."

She gave him a curious look.

"Are you sure you're okay? You can talk to me, it's been hard for all - "

"I said nothing was wrong," Ryuu snapped, folding his arms over his chest and looking away, anger bubbling in his chest.

His mother was still for a moment before she gave a slow nod. That action caused something inside Ryuu to snap, and he couldn't hold back the hurt and anger and sadness he was feeling.

"Why didn't you do more?" He shouted. "You could've done more. you didn't try hard enough."

Sakura looked like she'd been slapped. She stared at him, and Ryuu felt his eyes burn with unshed tears as his throat ached.

"That's what you think?" Sakura asked, her voice trembling. She stood and Ryuu involuntarily took a step back. "You think I  _let_  my son die?"

"Didn't you?" Ryuu asked. "You're the best medic in the world, aren't you? Or is that a lie?"

He saw something flash in her eyes and Ryuu clenched his fists tight as she stood.

"I know you're hurting, Ryuu, but you have no right to speak to me like that. Not as your mother, or as a medic," she said in a low voice. "You don't know what I've done or been through with Izara."

Ryuu's hands shook.

"Then you should've just let him die as a baby," Ryuu said, shaking all over.

In two strides, Sakura had come to him and slapped his face. Ryuu's head turned and he felt the sting and the shock. He looked back to his mother, seeing furious and shocked and desperately sad tears in her eyes.

Ryuu's lips trembled.

"I - " He tried to say something, anything. A tidal wave of guilt flooded him, washing away all the anger he was feeling.

"I'm sorry."

Sakura sobbed falling to her knees in front of him. He felt his face contort in pain when he saw the raw emotion on her face.

"I'm so sorry, Ryuu."

Her voice was barely more than a broken whisper. Her hand reached up for him and then it dropped.

Ryuu swallowed and wrapped his arms around her neck. He felt her stiffened slightly and then she hugged him, squeezing his waist tightly. He looked up to see that book on her desk. She let go when he released her a moment later. He felt hot and uncomfortable and walked away without another word, raising his hand to his stinging cheek.

* * *

Ayame and Ryuu stood at the village gates watching the retreating figure of their father head off to the war again.

Ayame's insides were twisting, and she felt lost and alone the further away he got. A glance at her brother, and she was worried to see he had no expression at all. His eyes were blank, his face vacant. It was like he wasn't there at all. She hesitantly reached and took his hand. He didn't react to it at all. He didn't pull away, but he also didn't return her grip. His hand was loose in hers, even as she entwined their grips and linked their fingers.

"When do you think he'll come back?" She asked Ryuu quietly.

"Maybe he won't," Ryuu said, his voice as expressionless as his face. "Maybe he'll die."

Ayame's eyes widened and she whirled him around by forcefully pulling on his arm. She stared hard in his eyes.

"Why would you say that?" She demanded.

He just looked at her.

"It's war," he said, looking at her. No, looking  _through_  her.

Ayame put her hands on both his cheeks and pulled his face close to hers, staring hard at him until she saw a flicker of something in his eyes.

"Our father  _will_  return," she said firmly.

He narrowed his eyes and then scoffed

"Of course he will," he muttered. "Just like Uncle Hashi."

Ayame flinched and let go of his face.

"Why are you being like this?" She asked. "I heard what you said to mama."

Ryuu looked away.

"I - I miss him too, but we're family. You know mama tried her best," Ayame stressed.

"Her best wasn't good enough," Ryuu snapped suddenly, his eyes darker than she'd ever seen him.

"Ryuu…"

He shook his head.

"Leave me alone, Aya."

She watched him walk away, his head down and hands stuffed into his pockets, a sinking feeling in her chest.

* * *

When Madara had left his office, telling him that he'd be returning to the front, Tobirama had reluctantly given his approval. He needed his commanders to focus on their tasks, not be torn from the inside. But Madara had insisted, and Tobirama saw that familiar determination in him and knew he couldn't prevent Madara from leaving. He was needed, badly. With Hashirama's dead and both he and Madara in the village, their forces were lacking figures to rally around.

When he'd inquired after Ryuu and Ayame, Madara had seemed worried. Ayame would be fine, he'd said. She was strong like Sakura, she would move forward. But Ryuu had more of Madara and Izuna in him. He was young, and his intelligence made him arrogant. More than Sakura realized, Madara confided. Tobirama had to agree. These last few months had been hard on everyone, but especially on those twins and apparently on Ryuu. Ryuu had idolized Hashirama, though he was stubborn like Madara and would never openly admit it, it was hard to miss the admiration in his eyes. As if confirming the depth of his feeling, Hashirama's death had awakened his Sharingan, and now the death of his beloved brother had awakened his Mangeyko.

Madara was worried, that much was obvious, and Tobirama was too. Ryuu Uchiha had a lot of potential and he'd have to be a fool to believe that just because Madara's curse had been broken, it meant that others wouldn't fall from the path he had once paved for their clan. He promised to keep an eye on Ayame and Ryuu whilst Madara was away, as much as he could spare too. Sakura as well. Madara had frowned at that, telling him to keep away from his wife. Tobirama had rolled his eyes at that, as if anyone would dare look at Sakura and risk Madara's wrath, least of all Tobirama, that would be just wrong on all levels.

Tobirama leaned back on his chair - his brother's chair; he was still unable to think of the seat or title as his yet, not when he was alone - and let out a small, sorrow-filled sigh. Hashirama. Izara. Countless others lost in this war. So many of his own clan just names engraved on a stone. He checked the time and quickly made the decision to see Madara off. When he saw the twins following with their father, he hung back and observed.

Tobirama watched with a frown at the small confrontation between brother and sister when Madara was gone. He saw the deep hurt inside Ryuu, the cutting way he spoke that was much too similar to the Madara-before-Sakura. Tobirama made a note to check in with them sooner rather than later. Without Izara and Madara, and with Sakura in a state of grief and Ayame so young, Ryuu needed a masculine presence that he couldn't push around.

* * *

**12 years old**

* * *

Ryuu refused to feel envious that Ayame slept together with their mother. He had refused the moment the words had come out of her mouth, even when she'd pleaded. He couldn't go back on his word now, no matter how much he secretly longed too.

Five weeks after Izara died, Ryuu woke on the morning of his and Ayame's birthday and even though it was chilly and cool, he left the house with bare feet and in only a thin shirt and pants that only reached mid-calf and went to Izara's tree. It was not a large tree, nor were its branches thick, but they would hold his weight. He climbed deftly into the crook of a branch and the trunk and sat, uncaring about the cool wind and how his toes and finger bit at the cold. It hardly felt like he was twelve. Part of him felt older than time, the part of him that felt the absence of his brother, and he had to admit, his father. Even the part of his mother that had gone away when Izara died. He suddenly felt very alone and hugged himself, drawing his knees to his chest.

In his lapse of focus, he missed Ayame coming out of the house, staring up at him from the courtyard below. He glanced at her.

"What?"

"Nothing," she said. "Mama said you might be cold. I brought you a blanket."

She held it up to him and he twisted his lips in a smile disguised as a grimace. He took it and wrapped it around himself and Aya gave him a knowing smile. He looked away and she sat at the base of the tree.

"Why do you keep a wall up, even with me?" Her voice was a little sad. "I - I feel like I'm losing two brothers."

Ryuu's mouth twitched and he felt guilty.

"I just don't want to feel it," he whispered. "It's too much."

Aya stood again.

"That's why you should talk to us. To mama and me. Or just me. We're twins, I know you, Ryuu. We share a life force. I'll share it with you! I'll do anything for you, Ryuu. Just don't shut me out."

He looked at her for a long moment before he scoffed.

 _"Tch._  You're so annoying."

But there was a warmth in his voice and her expression softened.

That night, Aya dragged him into bed with her and their mama and forced him into the middle of them both. Wrapped in the warm arms of Sakura, he felt a little uncomfortable, but fell easily to sleep and drifted into peaceful dreams when he felt her lips press into his forehead.

* * *

The second time Ryuu caught his mother writing in that book, he didn't alert her to his presence. He silently watched as she sealed it and then quickly retreated, his heart racing slightly as his earlier suspicions were once again raised. There was something she was hiding.

It took three days for him to discover the hiding place journal, and another month to study and understand how to undo the seal.

But once it was done, Ryuu found secrets upon secrets upon secrets.

* * *

Sakura knew something was wrong when she saw the door of her writing room ajar.

She slowly approached, feeling an atmosphere in the air that made the hair on her arms stand on end. She laid her hand on the door and pushed it open to see something that made her heart jump in her throat. Ryuu sat with her journals strewn about, his head lowered over the pages of what she recognized as her first journal.

She stood in the doorway, completely shocked and silent until she stepped into the room.

"What are you doing? How did you get these?"

She didn't expect that he would look up at her like she was a stranger, with eyes that shone with the deepest betrayal and confusion and doubt.

"Who are you?" He asked her, getting to his feet. "WHO ARE YOU? WHAT IS THIS?"

Ryuu's explosion shocked her more.

Before she could think of something and some way to explain, he threw the journal at her.

_"You're a liar!"_

And he stormed out of the room.

Sakura slowly began to collect her journals in a daze, hurt and confusion and wonder and anxiety coursing through her. She put them away before she went to look for her son.

_Who are you? Liar._

Whatever she had expected, it hadn't been that. The words caused physical pain, but all she could question was what he had been doing and how he had managed to unseal them. She put her hand to her head and closed her eyes. Tobirama. She needed Tobirama.

* * *

Tobirama had not expected Sakura's frantic visit, nor what she said. Immediately he set off in search of Ryuu, not trusting anyone else to find him. Tobirama found him at the training grounds, laying into a wooden post with every once of his strength. Without as much as a warning, Tobirama appeared beside him, gripped his arm and transported them back into his office. Ryuu, disconcerted by the sudden action was mid-motion when he landed on the floor of the office.

Tobirama watched with cool, observing eyes as the boy rejected Sakura's offer to help him to his feet and refused to look at her. He moved as far from her as he could. Tobirama activated the seals in the office.

"What the hell is going on?" Ryuu demanded, glaring at him.

Tobirama let the intensity of his chakra and intent leak from him, causing the hair of mother and son to blow back from its force. Ryuu shrunk a little and Sakura narrowed her eyes at him.

"You are speaking to your Hokage," Tobirama thundered.

Ryuu swallowed and though his eyes remained defiant, he inclined his head slightly.

"What am I doing here, Lord Hokage?" He asked, unable to hide all the mocking in his voice.

Tobirama settled down and he saw Sakura relax slightly.

"You have invaded the privacy of one of our village leaders," Tobirama said harshly. "Did you think you would remain unpunished?"

Ryuu's eyes widened slightly in fear and then they narrowed in anger.

"Punish me? Do it. I don't care. Why should I? My existence is built on a lie, isn't it?"

"Ryuu! That's not true! How could you think something like that?" Sakura asked, distressed.

Ryuu looked at her darkly.

"So you don't deny it then?" He turned to Tobirama. "Either of you?"

Tobirama looked at him coldly.

"You dare to question and grow angry when you understand nothing? That is a child's reaction."

Ryuu flinched.

"I'm not a child! Stop lying to me!"

Sakura and Tobirama's eyes met. She looked pained and he gave her a little nod.

"What do you want to know?" Sakura asked quietly.

Ryuu seemed taken aback by the question, but he quickly recovered himself.

"Was it true?" He asked, still scowling but with an edge of curiosity and something else Tobirama couldn't decipher in his voice. "You're… you're from a different time?" He asked.

Sakura nodded, looking torn between wanted to maintain her composure as a shinobi and reaching for her son.

"I am from a future that no longer exists," she answered him.

Tobirama knew how much she hurt when she spoke like that, but he kept his gaze trained on Ryuu. The boy's brow furrowed.

"Why?" He questioned. "And who..is Itachi? Is that the hero who died in battle with the Nine-Tails? And Kakashi, who is he? Why are your books all written to him?"

Sakura took a deep breath.

"The future doesn't exist anymore because along with your father, Hashirama, Tobirama and Izuna, Itachi and I destroyed a being who had been the cause of devastation and war. That fight… it was against a being named Zetsu and the Nine-Tails, and it is where your uncle Izuna and Itachi died," Sakura explained. "Itachi was a very dear friend who I grew up with. Both of us came here, to this era, to destroy that evil being."

Ryuu clenched his jaw, seeming confused and eager and curious and angry all at once.

"And Kakashi?"

Sakura gave a little smile.

"He was my sensei. Just like Sarutobi-sensei is to you."

Ryuu's frown deepened.

"I write to him because," she hesitated. "Because it's…I find comfort in it."

Ryuu stared at the ground and Tobirama felt the hair on his arms rise slightly, he kept his face clear but he was feeling some trepidation at the revelations and what it would mean for Ryuu.

"How?" He demanded. "How did you come back?"

Before Sakura could answer, Tobirama did.

"You do not need to know."

Ryuu turned on him.

"What? How could you s - "

Tobirama narrowed his eyes.

"You are a chunin. You have no right to that information."

Ryuu's eyes flashed with anger and Tobirama stood.

"Tobi - "

Sakura stood straight and silent when he turned to her sharply. He knew that she wanted to tell her son everything, but she knew as well as he did that the fewer people who knew the better. It would only put Ryuu in danger, having those memories. If the worst happened, and he was kidnapped or taken hostage and his memories raided, the enemy would have knowledge of Sakura and the Sage of Six Paths, and that would be dangerous for the world.

Tobirama pushed aside the regret he felt at having to keep Ryuu in the dark, but family or not, Ryuu was only a chunin and a shinobi under his command and this was far above the level of secret he was allowed to know.

"Ryuu Uchiha, you have forced the revelations of secrets that very few at the highest level of our village are aware of. If you cannot swear yourself to secrecy, all knowledge of this will be stripped from you."

Ryuu looked shocked and Sakura looked at him with some anger. She put a hand on Ryuu's shoulder.

"He is  _my son_ , Tobirama."

"It matters not," Tobirama said firmly.

"I won't say anything," Ryuu muttered to him. "I'm not a fool."

Tobirama studied him for a moment before nodding.

"There will be no more discussion about this, between yourselves or at any other interval," he said.

Sakura looked like she wanted to argue but kept quiet, her mouth set in an angry line.

"Wait for me outside, Ryuu, please," Sakura said, dropping her hand from his shoulder.

Ryuu looked between them with a troubled frown but walked out.

"That's not fair, Tobi, and you know it!" Sakura said as soon as the door was closed.

Tobirama took a deep breath and sat heavily on his chair.

"Don't look at me like that, Saki. You know as well as I do that the knowledge of your origins is dangerous. I'm going to have to send Ryuu and Ayame to the war soon and if they're captured and tortured for information and this is discovered everyone will be in danger."

Sakura paled.

"They're only 12," she whispered.

"And they are already jonin-level shinobi." He ran a hand through his hair. "They won't be at the front lines, but they'll be part of higher-ranking missions when we can't spare others." Sakura looked anxious but slightly mollified. He glanced at the door. "I'm sending for Madara. You need to talk to him together about this."

Sakura looked surprised.

"But Madara is leading our forces," she said. "

"Yuri is more than capable of standing in while Madara returns," Tobirama said.

Sakura nodded.

"Saki, just keep an eye on Ryuu," Tobirama said, troubled.

Sakura nodded, looking as troubled as he felt.

"He's angry," she murmured, closing her eyes. "He's so changed from before…"

"He's grieving," Tobirama agreed. "And grief can make you do and feel things you wouldn't normally. Be careful, the Uchiha feel deeply."

Sakura narrowed her eyes.

"You should be careful, Tobi. Words like that are dangerous."

Tobirama and Sakura looked at each other and then she left, and Tobirama clenched his jaw, wondering why he couldn't shake the foreboding feeling in his gut.

* * *

Every night before she went to sleep, and every morning when she woke up, Ayame repeated the same thing:

_I am Ayame Uchiha and I will endure._

She looked at herself in the mirror and swallowed thickly, forcing down all the feelings of longing she had for her father, of the pain that she felt with the absence of Izara, of the guilt she felt when she saw the dark circles and forced smiles of her mother, of the anxiety she felt at her brothers cold silences and rare acceptance of her.

She felt so alone.

She gripped the sink. Something had happened between her mama and Ryuu. She didn't know what it was, they refused to tell her or talk about it. So she tried to fill the void that was opening between them, but Ayame was tired. She was so  _tired._

"My girl."

Ayame's eyes snapped open and in the mirror, she saw the last person she expected.

"Papa!"

She turned and jumped into his arms, squeezing tightly. He let out a little puff of air and slight chuckle and hugged her back and for the first time since he'd left, Ayame felt a sense of security. She pulled back and sniffed a little.

"You're home."

He gave her a tight smile.

"Only for today," he said, apologetically.

Ayame forced a smile onto her face and he frowned at her.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she lied.

Madara gave a  _humph_  and folded his arms over his chest.

"You need to work on hiding your true feelings," he murmured.

Ayame lowered her eyes and he let out a sigh, she raised her eyes again.

"Are you doing okay?" She asked him hesitantly. "Mama…mama is sad."

Madara gave her a long look, and she hated that she couldn't read him.

"Death is part of shinobi life," he replied and paused. Ayame hoped he was going to say something else because she felt disbelief at how callous he sounded. A pained expression crossed his face. "But Izara was not a shinobi." He cleared his expression, and Ayame understood what he meant when he told her she needed to work on hiding her feelings.

She nodded and they let the subject drop. She understood without him having to say anything more. He patted her head.

"Tobirama wants to see you," he said.

Ayame's eyes lit up.

"He does?"

Madara nodded and then rolled his eyes.

"Why do you like that repulsive idiot so much?" He muttered with some disgust, and Ayame felt a real, cheeky smile on her face.

"'Cause he's handsome!"

Madara put two fingers to the bridge of his nose.

"And he's super strong and cool!"

Madara breathed deeply as if in pain, muttering something under his breath, and Ayame giggled.

"But you're the best, papa."

He let his nose go and looked down at her, trying and failing to hide the happy little smile on his face. Ayame gave him a quick hug, squeezing him tightly before running off to see Tobi.

* * *

Ayame rushed home with the best news in the world:  _missions!_

But she returned to a house so cold it should have been empty. Her mother was sitting in her office on the floor, the air around her made Ayame pause and walk away. Ryuu was locked in his room like the day of Izara's funeral. Throwing things and yelling. Ayame swallowed, feeling oppressed and scared, and ran to the gates. Her papa wouldn't leave without her, would he? Her heart raced as she sprinted, her legs ached and eyes watered but she cast out her senses and couldn't feel him and her stomach dropped.

She was too late.

Ayame crouched at the gates, hugging her knees and keeping her eyes dry as she stared unblinkingly at the ground. Why was everything so wrong? Why was it that every time she tried to feel good after Izara's death, every time something decent happened, every time she felt a little bit of happiness it was destroyed?

He had left her.

Her father broke his promise.

But worse, worse was that he made the gate guard tell her. A stranger. Some chunin who looked at her like she was pitiable.

She wasn't pitiable, she was  _Ayame-damn-Uchiha!_

Ayame stood and swallowed her feelings, wiping her dry, she straightened her back and walked swiftly and calmly into the village. She would bury her feelings, just like he told her. She'd bury it all so deep no one would ever see what she was feeling because then she wouldn't hurt.

And then she'd never be hurt.

Never again.

* * *

**13 years old**

* * *

"I refuse."

Ayame stared at Ryuu in disbelief.

The Hokage didn't blink, even when Ryuu turned and walked out of the office.

"Ryuu - wait!"

"Ayame."

The sound of Tobirama's voice stopped her. She paused, her hand reached out in mid-air towards the closed door. She pulled it back and stood before her Hokage. If Ryuu wasn't going to accept something so generous or rare because of whatever stupid grudge he couldn't let go of, that was his problem. Ayame wasn't going to turn this opportunity.

She met the Hokage's steady gaze.

"What say you to my offer?" He asked.

She fell gracefully into a bow before his desk, head lowered.

"I accept, Lord Hokage. Thank you for this opportunity."

"Rise."

She did and her heart fluttered a little at the small smile on his face.

"We begin training tomorrow morning. Don't be late."

Ayame nodded seriously and turned to leave.

"And Aya."

She froze. He hadn't called her that since she was eight.

"You're allowed to show you're happy about becoming my apprentice."

There was warmth in his voice and it made it hard for her to be there when she worried about Ryuu. Instead of responding, she swallowed thickly and walked out without looking back.

Of course, she was happy. She was  _ecstatic._  But Madara was waiting for her outside the door and she had learned to hide her feelings in the year since he'd told her too, and when she wanted, Ayame could hold grudges. She didn't like when promises were broken, and having her papa spoil her a little at times was nice too.

* * *

**14 years old**

* * *

Losing Kagami was like losing Izara all over again. Matsuri was stricken with grief, and Sakura looked the same as she did two years earlier. Sakiko was at the frontlines with the medical unit and didn't return to the village for his funeral, but Yuri did.

It hurt Ayame to see that family that was as close to her as her own in so much pain. She endured as she'd learned. She cried for him, she allowed herself the day of his funeral and the day after before she locked away her tears. But Ayame felt angry, angrier than she had in the last two years. Ryuu hadn't gone to the funeral. He hadn't even been at the name engraving ceremony and when she looked at him she saw nothing in her brother's eyes. No sorrow, no regret, no sadness,  _nothing._

She confronted him on a dreary afternoon when rain threatened to fall. They were in the courtyard, by Izara's tree. She tried to stop him from going wherever he was going, but he ignored her like he had been doing for months and months. So she escalated by getting in front of him and pushing his shoulder, forcing him to stop. He looked at her blankly.

"What's your problem?" She asked. "Why didn't you come to the funeral or the ceremony?"

The blank stare turned bored.

"What difference would it make?"

Ayame couldn't believe what she heard.

"It would make all the difference to the people who love and care for him. Including you!"

Ryuu shrugged her hand from his shoulder.

"Kagami is just another dead shinobi."

Ayame felt a spike of pain hearing that.

"He's family," she breathed, hurt.

"Are you done? I'm going to train."

Ayame grit her teeth and clenched her jaw before clenching her fist and raising to punch him. Ryuu caught her fist inches from his face, surprising her with his quickness and strength. His eyes narrowed at her and she flinched at the coldness she saw in him.

He released her.

"Ayame. There's no point in getting worked up over deaths that are destined."

Ayame felt a shiver in her spine as he spoke and was still as he walked off, her mind full of confusion and worry. She didn't understand what he was talking about and the way his eyes looked made her a little scared.

 

* * *

**15 years old**

* * *

Ryuu stared at Tobirama as he made the announcement. The First Shinobi War was at an end. It had been eleven years, and even Ryuu who'd fought a limited amount compared to others was relieved at hearing it was done. But he wasn't happy. He didn't remember the last time he felt that emotion. He glanced around at the shinobi who cheered and cried and hugged each other and Ryuu felt distant from all the celebration.

He saw Shouta Uchiha by him. The man remained silent, probably upset that he'd lived through the war but Hikari had died protecting the Hokage. It was only a year ago. Danzo and Hiruzen were looking at each other with relief, but Ryuu could only look at that Shimura with loathing. He was the reason Kagami was dead. Ryuu couldn't believe that Kagami would sacrifice himself for one of that clan, especially not  _him._  Even Ryuu knew that if Shikata didn't like someone, they weren't to be trusted. He could see the way his mother looked at Danzo too and Ryuu knew she thought the same thing. It was easy to deduce that Sakura Haruno and Danzo Shimura didn't have a good history. Sakura Uchiha tried to hide it though.

Ryuu was able to deduce a lot of things from those journals. His memory was excellent, even after that damned Hokage took them and sealed them away somewhere secret. It meant little to him in the end; getting Sakura to talk about her past was easy. It was like she needed it, her guilt made it simple. So he connected many things with what was the past and what was now.

Kagami. Danzo. Hikari. Madara. The village. Tobirama. Izara. Sakura.

Ryuu pushed away his thoughts for a moment and looked at his sister, who was smiling so happily, clinging to Sakiko like everything was fine, so freely ignorant of the truth of this world. He almost envied her, but it was easier to disregard any type of feeling about Ayame. Izara was gone, and Ayame was too close. Even when he tried to keep her away from him, to put up walls, she always managed to sneak back in. Late night talks, sneaking him treats, fighting with him to show that she cared, always, always badgering him for some inane reason. If he lost Aya…

Ryuu quickly turned and weaved his way through the crowd, ignoring the call from his mother, and headed into the forest. He walked clenching and unclenching his fist, feeling unsettled and annoyed. For the last three years, he'd felt the same: this itching annoyance that everything was wrong. Coming back in time, changing events, influencing things… Ryuu twisted his shoulders uncomfortably. He didn't like it. It was just wrong. The world, everything. It just felt wrong.

He walked through the trees to a familiar place, one that his mother had shown him. A house. Somewhere she had lived with that…Itachi. Ryuu didn't like that name. He'd thought of him as a hero once, but since learning the truth, it was a bitter memory. He didn't like thinking about that man, as much as he didn't like thinking of that Kakashi she was always thinking of and writing too. He stood in front of that house for a long time, feeling at odds with it until he twisted his mouth.

"This shouldn't be here."

He quickly formed hand signs and blew a huge fireball at the house, engulfing it in flames.

"Ryuu?"

Ryuu startled and turned to see Ayame running towards him, staring at him and the house.

"Ryuu, what are you doing?"

She always looked so shocked. Only to him did she show her true face. She was getting good at hiding everything she felt and thought.

Ryuu turned away from her and looked back at the flames. He could feel their heat, and it was seeping into him, making him feel hot but filled with something…something strong and right. Like he was finally figuring out something that had been on the tip of his tongue for so long.

"Burning something," he answered casually.

"Obviously, but why?" She peered at the flames in concern. "I thought you were in trouble! Is that a house?"

Ryuu glanced at her and nodded.

"It's wrong," he murmured.

"What?"

He pursed his lips.

"This house is proof the world is wrong."

Ayame looked at him with confusion and he saw worry in her eyes. He slapped her hand away when it reached for him.

"We're wrong too, you know," he said to her.

"What are you talking about?"

"Wrong, wrong, wrong," Ryuu muttered.

"Ryuu, you're scaring me," she whispered. "Why don't you talk to me anymore? We can talk, you know. I'm your sister, your twin. I know you best."

Ryuu laughed, feeling oddly lightheaded.

"Know me? How can you? You don't even know yourself. One day, Aya, one day you'll see I'm right."

She just looked at him and looked at him. She'll see one day, he knew it because now his feelings of unease were washed away and replaced with certainty.

Things were  _wrong,_  and he was going to make them right.


	19. Part Five: Secrets of the Uchiha

**Part Five: Secrets of the Uchiha**

**  
** **Chapter 17**

* * *

**15 years old**

* * *

 

Sakura stared at the ruins of her house with disbelief and a feeling of profound sorrow. Tendrils of smoke rose from the charred and broken wood, embers smouldered in the fading sunlight, and her heart was filled with confusion and concern.

"Why would he do this?" She whispered.

Madara put his arm around her shoulders and hugged her to his chest, silent as he stared at the mess before them. She didn't know what he was thinking, but she could feel his racing heart through his clothes. Sakura swallowed painfully and sniffed, removing herself from Madara and walking towards the ruins, looking over them to see if anything had survived. Half the frame of the house stood fragile, while the rest of it was a crumpled mess. She felt hollow as she looked at it. She just couldn't understand why Ryuu would burn the house, or what he was thinking. He'd been so distant to her lately. Was it because he was angry at her? Did he really believe that she was a liar, that his existence was built on a lie? That idea made her feel more pain than she'd ever known before. Her children… her children were everything to her. Ryuu and Aya… they were the most precious things in the world, they kept her grounded after losing Izara and Kagami and Hikari.

She turned back to look at Madara, whose expression was turning dark.

"What are you thinking?" She questioned quietly.

Madara's eyes flickered to her and she saw his face was tight with worry, a kind of worry that she hadn't seen for years.

"Madara?"

He shook his head.

"I'm sorry," he said to her, his voice thick.

Sakura's lips trembled and she reached for his hand.

"It was just a house," Sakura said, her voice breaking.

"Don't lie, Sakura," Madara snapped and she flinched. He let out a deep breath and in a softer voice, "We both know this was more than just a house for you."

Sakura hugged her arms around her waist.

"Why is he so angry?" She breathed, her voice hitching a little.

"I don't know," Madara murmured, troubled.

"It'll pass, won't it?" She asked. "He's going to be okay."

Madara didn't respond and Sakura didn't stop hugging herself.

* * *

**16 years old**

* * *

 

Ayame didn't understand why Ryuu wasn't accepted into ANBU and Tobirama-sensei refused to explain it. She was getting sick of feeling like she was being left out of some big secret.

Ryuu was the best shinobi she'd ever seen. He was, admittedly, a bit cold and calculating but he always thought things through for the best outcome with the least chance of loss of life. She knew that a lot of people didn't understand that though, they just thought he was aloof and unfeeling. Ayame sat on her Uncle Hashi's giant head and gnawed her lip as she looked over the village. Since the war had ended, she'd had a lot of training with Tobirama, her mother, father, and Sarutobi-sensei.

From Tobirama, she was learning tactics, strategy, and taijustu at a speed that left her dizzy. Her mother had begun to teach her medical ninjutsu and her father was helping her master her Sharingan and advanced Uchiha fighting-techniques, and Sarutobi-sensei was continuing his regular training with her and Ryuu like they had been for the last ten years. Sometimes they were all sent out as a team, which was awesome and fun - when they weren't fighting for their lives.

Sure, Ryuu had been more distant since Izara had died, and yes, she knew that his relationship with their parents had practically disintegrated, but that didn't take away from all his accomplishments. He was good enough at medical ninjutsu that she'd heard her mother telling Sakiko that she'd better study harder if she didn't want Ryuu to overtake her. Although Ayame knew, even if no one else did, that the only reason he spent so much time training in medical ninjutsu was Izara. Sometimes she was worried about how much her twin focused on their brother. Not to mention that his Mangekyo Sharingan was as incredible as it was fearsome, but he was strange about keeping his abilities quiet and rarely used it. Which was just as well considering he could go blind. But Ayame was his twin, so he told her about how his genjutsu was so powerful even their father, another Mangekyo user, really struggled to break it. He trapped them inside a world or dreams or nightmares, whatever he decided. Ayame made him promise he'd never use her as a test subject for his abilities.

When night fell, she jumped down the mountain and headed into the village. She walked the paved streets with her hands linked together behind her back, her long dark hair swinging as she swayed and strolled, hiding her feelings of anxiety with a bounce in her step and a small smile on her face. She greeted the people she passed with smiles, stopping a few times to have little chats with them. She loved this place. She loved her village and looking at the time, it was the hour she needed to report to ANBU and collect her new uniform. She made her way to the nondescript building and opened the door. It was dimly lit inside, and nervously she walked up to the counter when a single shinobi was waiting for her behind the caged barrier.

Silently he slipped a uniform beneath the bars for her and told her to change, giving her no direction on where to go. Looking around she saw a doorway and clutching the uniform to her, she walked into her new life.

* * *

Ayame felt like she barely saw her family anymore. ANBU took up so much of her time, and since she was the newbie and added that she was a 'prodigy' and the daughter of the man who oversaw ANBU, she was being given some rough treatment to prove she was worthy of being there. Her father knew all about it, but he never stepped in, and as much as she wanted him to as his daughter as a shinobi she would have been majorly pissed off if he did. So despite being tired and annoyed at being treated badly, Ayame was happy.

Still, she did miss her family. Her mother was busy in the hospital again, taking care of those still suffering from the effects of the war, her father was constantly busy with village politics, and Ryuu was always off doing his own thing. She sighed heavily as she sat on the roof of their house as the cool night wind blew by her, sneaking into the folds of her clothes and made her shiver. Ryuu had gotten even quieter and distant since his rejection from ANBU. She leaned her chin on her knees grumpily, thinking about how many times he'd blown her off lately for training.

"Just how much training does he need?" Ayame muttered. "It's like he's trying to be the Hokage."

Her eyes widened.  _Did_  he want to be Hokage? She frowned, she'd never heard him say something like that, or act like that was what he wanted. Maybe he didn't want to be Hokage, but he was definitely aiming to be strong.

Hokage… the thought rolled around in her head. She'd never thought much about it before, but Hokage Ayame Uchiha did have a nice ring to it. Her lips formed a little grin, and she considered going off to find Tobirama-sensei and tell him about her newfound goal, and then she shook her head. Going over to Tobi's house this late at night…she wasn't a little kid anymore, and even though she was his apprentice, it was past the point where it'd be acceptable. She'd heard her parents talking about the comments the elders and the other clans had been making about her and Ryuu getting married soon. She sighed and lay on her back, banishing those horrible marriage thoughts from her mind. She didn't like anyone she'd met enough for that, and she would run away before she was forced into marriage against her will, not matter what her standing was in the clan.

Ayame stared up at the stars until for some reason she shivered, feeling as though something bad was in the air. Moments later, she heard her mother call for her, and Ayame jumped down swung onto the verandah, landing lightly before she walked into the house.

"Mama?"

"Here."

She was about to walk towards her mother when a gust of wind blew open the door behind her and she heard glass shattering, and she realized it was the photographs from the cabinet. Ayame gasped, and Sakura came out from around the kitchen as Ayame shut the door again and turned to pick up the frames.

"Are you all right?" Sakura asked her.

"Yeah," Ayame replied, grimacing as she saw the cracked glass in the frames. "Sorry, mama."

Sakura gave her a soft smile.

"It's not your fault." She picked up a frame and then frowned.

"What is it?"

Sakura suddenly shook her head.

"Probably nothing," she murmured.

"Mama? Come on, tell me."

Sakura bit her lip.

"The way they're broken…" she trailed off.

Ayame frowned and looked down at the four frames with cracked glass. It took a moment before she saw what her mother had and when she did, her face took on the same troubled expression as Sakura.

The feeling of dread deepened in her stomach. Silently, they collected the frames and didn't speak any more about it. The only place the glass was cracked was over Ryuu's face.

* * *

The moon was full, the air cool and the forest was quiet save the little rustling of the night creatures. Ryuu stood alone, a solitary figure before the Naka Shrine. He stared at the building faintly illuminated by the light of the moon, as he held his headband loosely in his hands before him. He looked down at it, at the symbol of Konohagakure.

He'd done a lot of thinking over the last five years about his village and how he would accomplish his goals. Every moment of his life he'd dedicated to gaining power so he could do what he needed to do.

_You are not suited to ANBU. Your actions are motivated by selfish desire instead of the greater good of the village._

The words Tobirama had said so calmly, so cooly, made him boil with rage. Everything he did was for the good of the village. This false reality they lived in was what was wrong. This reality that birthed and killed Izara. That forced unnecessary change and shifted what  _should_  be. He gripped his headband tightly, the metal biting into the soft flesh of his palm and he grimaced with anger, feeling the rejection in his bones. They couldn't understand him, not Sakura, not Madara or Tobirama. They were living without realizing their sins, ignorant of the suffering they were causing.

He took his kunai and swiftly cut across his headband. There was no going back now. He tied it around his head, and turned and waited for the one he knew was close. He felt a sense of calm determination and purpose settle on him and his eyes spun red.

From the darkness, Madara Uchiha appeared, walking towards him. Sharingan met Sharingan. He saw the moment the man he once called 'father' noticed the cut in his headband.

"What are you doing, Ryuu?" Madara questioned.

It was so like him to cut to the point. Unlike Sakura, who would get so emotional and cry, beg to understand. Madara knew better. Ryuu had seen him keeping a close watch over him, just like Tobirama.

_Your chakra is tainted. Think hard about the life you want to live and the path you would follow._

Ryuu set his shoulders firm and straight, he raised his chin slightly.

"Righting the wrongs of this world," he said, clear and strong.

Madara's jaw clenched and his eyes narrowed.

"So you have decided to cast away your family."

Ryuu sneered.

"Family?" He scoffed. "Sakura Haruno should not exist now and you should not be here."

Ryuu was surprised that it was not with anger that Madara looked at him, but with pity. It made his stomach twist.

"Then it is as I feared. You are misguided if you cannot recognize the suffering of your own mother, even after knowing the truth."

"Truth?" He shook his head. "No. Everything has been a lie."

"Love is not a lie, son," Madara said. "Your love for your sister is not a lie. Your love for Izara is not a lie."

Ryuu bared his teeth.

"You don't get to talk about them," he growled. "If it wasn't for you, Izara would never have suffered."

"You are foolish," Madara spat. "State your purpose. I will not allow anyone to harm this village. Not even my own child."

A slow smile spread of Ryuu's face.

"I don't care about the village," he said. "All I need is the power to do what I must."

"Power," Madara murmured. "Then I was right. You are lost."

Ryuu's mouth twitched in annoyance. He wasn't lost.  _They were:_  Madara, Sakura, Tobirama,  _they_  were the lost ones.

There was a silence, a silence they both knew and understood, the moment before the battle where the tension builds and the waiting happens. Ryuu's veins pumped with adrenaline but his mind stayed clear and there was only one thought that stayed with him.

One of them would die tonight.

* * *

"Mama?"

Sakura stopped her pacing to see Ayame standing in her bedroom doorway, dressed in her ANBU uniform sans mask. Her face looked as worried as Sakura felt.

"I'm going to look for them," she said.

Sakura swallowed and nodded. Pacing wasn't going to do anything. Since those photographs had broken earlier in the evening, and Ryuu hadn't come home for dinner, and Madara had said he would go out and look for him with an odd look in his eyes… Sakura was afraid. Terrified.

"I'm coming."

Ayame looked mildly surprised.

"You are?"

Sakura gave her a frown and a little smile.

"Maybe you've forgotten," she said, slipping off her robe and rummaging in her wardrobe for her clothes. "But I'm a shinobi, and a damn good one."

Ayame gave her a grin, but it looked a little forced.

"Oh, sorry, I guess you've been a pencil pusher for so long recently I forgot."

Sakura have her a playful glare as she strapped her weapons pouch to her leg and pulled on her sandals. She glanced at the uniform Ayame wore, the sword strapped to her waist, the one Madara had commissioned and gifted her.

"We're very proud of you, you know that, don't you?"

She stood and smiled at Ayame, who stood at the same height as her. It was a pity that she didn't get her fathers height along with his looks. Her daughter was a beautiful girl, in heart and spirit.

Ayame nodded, looking away for a moment.

"Mama… I have a bad feeling," she whispered. "I don't know why, but we really need to find them."

Sakura wanted to comfort her and tell her everything was going to be okay, but when it came down to it, she felt the same thing. Deepening darkness, and once again cursed herself for not being the shining beacon of hope that Naruto was.

"We'll find them together," she said instead, gripping Ayame's hand for a moment. "Let's go."

* * *

 

Tobirama shot up out of bed, startled awake by the unleashing of a familiar chakra.

"Ayame."

He threw back his covers and slipped into his battle wear. Worry ran through him. Ayame was not the airhead she pretended to be, that facade of cheerfulness was just a defense mechanism from callous words Madara had spoken years earlier. She was more thoughtful and considerate than she let on - more like Sakura than she realized. She wouldn't spike her chakra to that level inside the village without reason, and that made Tobirama nervous.

He felt a flicker of chakra behind him as an ANBU operative appeared.

"Lord Hokage."

"Report."

There was a pause and Tobirama narrowed his eyes.

"It - It - " The ANBU dropped its head. "It's Lord Madara. He's at Naka Shrine, and so is Lady Sakura and Ayame."

Tobirama didn't like the way he worded that, and in a flash he was gone, appearing at the forest around the shrine to a sound that made his bones chill. He sprinted from the trees to the screaming. He came out of the trees and saw Sakura standing some distance away from Ayame and the prone figure on the ground.

Sakura turned slowly, sensing his arrival, while Ayame screamed and Tobirama knew instantly that Madara was dead. There were no tears in Sakura's eyes, just a familiar emptiness.

"It was Ryuu," she said to him, her voice devoid of emotion. She pointed at the engraving in the ground, illuminated by the moonlight. "He left me a message."

Tobirama stepped up to her, putting a hand on her shoulder. He felt her trembling, but she was trying to hold it together. As her friend, as Madara's friend, he felt rage and anguish. As Hokage, he needed to focus. His eyes narrowed when he comprehended the message Ryuu left.

_The first step in righting your wrongs, Haruno._

Tobirama let his hand drop from her shoulder and clenched his other fist as he walked to Ayame.

She was sobbing, kneeling over her father's body, her hands frozen halfway to his face, pulling back and going forwards like she couldn't decide what to do. Tobirama flinched when he saw why she hesitated. His eyes were gone. Rage boiled in Tobirama and Ayame flinched when she felt his release of chakra. When she turned to him, shocked by the suddenness of his presence, he saw the blood pouring from her eyes and the Mangekyo in them. Almost the same as her brothers, but the colours weren't inverted and the triangle was flipped.

"W-why?" She asked him, her voice broken.

Tobirama didn't have an answer for her.

* * *

**20 years old**

* * *

 

The day after Ryuu Uchiha murdered his father and stole his eyes, the news sent shockwaves throughout the entire Leaf Village. Madara Uchiha, the great Madara Uchiha, murdered by his own son? Rumours spread like wildfire, speculation about his motives was fodder for the gossips everywhere. The Uchiha Clan suffered major damage to their reputation.

Sakura Uchiha retired from the hospital on a forced leave of absence ordered by Tobirama. For a long few months, she barely left her house.

Ayame suffered in silence. Over the four years that Ryuu was missing and seemingly vanished into thin air, she became someone almost unrecognizable to those who knew her. Her cheerfulness was replaced with a sharp edge and cutting sarcasm. She withdrew from people and applied herself to the shinobi arts and went dark in ANBU, until she started to be called the Ghost for her kill techniques. Those who began that moniker were ignorant of how much she hated it, how much it hurt when she heard it used like that and not the way Izara had used it.

When the whispers of Ryuu came around again, Sakura and Tobirama decided it was time to tell Ayame the truth about what he had done and why. Much to their relief, Ayame accepted it with time and without the rejection Ryuu had. But she was furious at being kept in the dark for so long. If she had known…if only she had known and been able to talk to him…. Everything he'd said to her made sense now. How she didn't know herself, how the world was wrong….

She took out her frustrations on her mother and Tobirama and then let them go. After her head had cleared in the months after the incident, she'd made a decision that no matter what she wasn't going to let anything change who she was. She wasn't going to lose herself in her feelings like he did. She would never be another Ryuu.

Ayame spent her limited free time reading her mothers journals, and slowly became fascinated with the life she lead. The first time she approached Sakura with questions about her life, she was terrified that she'd be gently rejected. But instead, her mother seemed relieved. She even teared up a little. She told her all about her friends, her parents, her hopes and dreams. She confided the troubles she had, and Ayame was amazed by how different the young Sakura sounded to the woman she knew as her mother. The two of them shared a deepening bond, and Ayame gained a new respect for her. She finally understood why she'd been so upset when Ryuu burned the house in the woods down, and paid her respects to Itachi whenever she could.

It was the eve of their twentieth birthday when Ryuu made his move and devastated them all again.

He targeted Mito Uzumaki first, stealing her from her home and to the Valley of Sacrifices where he attempted to withdraw the Nine-Tails from her. When they caught up with him, Mito was struggling to regain control, using all her sealing ability to keep the Nine-Tails contained and Ryuu from breaking through.

But when Ayame arrived and she caught a glimpse of Ryuu's face, and their eyes locked, she knew something was wrong. She was caught in his genjutsu, long enough for him to show her a nightmare, a nightmare she knew was his true intentions. Sakura caught her as she broke free, and she looked at her mother with fear.

"He's not here," she breathed. "Ho-hokage. The Hokage."

Ayame turned and sprinted, panic in her body, pumping her legs and adrenaline making her fly faster and faster back to the village, desperately hoping she wasn't too late. It was so like him, a diversion, a trick, a deception that seemed so real you couldn't dismiss the chance it was. Ryuu didn't want the Nine-Tails. Mito was  _supposed_  to be the jinchuuriki.

He wanted Tobirama. Tobirama who was supposed to be dead.

Ayame's eyes watered as she ran. He couldn't. He  _wouldn't._  After her father….

"Please, please,  _please_  no, Ryuu," she pleaded to no one.

She was too late. He was waiting for her.

Tobirama was on the floor on his stomach. Blood pooled around him, soaking the carpet, his clothes. Ayame looked on in horror. Ryuu stood beside him with his foot on Tobirama's back, as if he were standing on some great prize he'd hunted. Ryuu raised his eyes to her and Ayame stumbled back, fear, shock, disgust, disbelief ran through her. She couldn't concentrate, her body trembled, overwhelmed. She didn't recognise him anymore. That wasn't her brother.

"I told you I'd right all the wrongs in this world, Aya. Won't you join me?" He held out a bloodied hand to her.

"You're a monster," she breathed.

For a moment, she thought she saw hurt flash on his face but it was gone so quickly she couldn't be sure it wasn't her imagination. He sighed.

"So blinded. You'll see the truth one day, Aya. This world isn't meant to be this way, and I'll prove it to you."

"I'll stop you," Ayame said, regaining her footing.

He gave her a cruel smile.

"You could kill your own brother, Aya? You think you could cross that line, little Ghost?"

Ayame flinched. Ryuu suddenly looked off to the side and gave a heavy sigh.

"Sakura's coming," he muttered with annoyance. He looked back at her and her hand went to her sword handle. There was a glint in his eyes. "Shall we play another game of hide-and-seek, dear sister? Just like old times."

She withdrew her sword and attacked him, but he was gone before she finished her swing. With a regretful and heartbroken glance at Tobirama's body, Ayame chased after her brother.

The battle between mother, sister, and brother was fierce and desperate and wrought with emotion. Those that witnessed it said that it was impossible to get too close to aide without risking becoming targets. Sakura and Ayame rampaged against Ryuu. Sakura's strength destroyed much of the landscape and when twin faced twin, they could hardly be seen or followed, they were moving too fast. It was a matter of luck and Ayame's skill to keep Ryuu back, just barely, that Sakura managed to spend the time gathering nature energy and enter Sage mode and rip one of his eyes out of his head. Ayame had never heard him scream like that before. With her sage mode now gone, Sakura was almost killed by Ryuu who was enraged by her theft. But it was then that the back-up came and Ayame landed a blow with her sword that would have killed anyone else.

Once again, Ryuu vanished. His ability to cast perfect illusions and control the chakra with them meant that tracking him was hard. When no word, no whisper, not even a body was heard of, people thought he was dead, but Ayame and Sakura knew he had survived. They could feel it.

After the funeral for the Hokage and the inauguration of Hiruzen Sarutobi, an ANBU appeared before Ayame with a summons from the ANBU Commander. He presented her with a scroll.

"Orders from Lord Second, if he were killed by Ryuu Uchiha."

Ayame took it with shaking hands. A contingency plan, of course he'd have made one.

"This is a mission scroll," she murmured.

The commander stayed silent as she read it.

"Understood?" He questioned.

Ayame nodded shakily.

"Understood."

"Destroy the scroll. A copy will be kept here, under seal, top secret until the time you die," he said to her.

She burned the scroll.

Her mission was simple.

She had the freedom to move freely and do whatever she must to kill Ryuu.

Ayame Uchiha became a Ghost and put aside her Hokage dreams to protect the ones she loved, and the ones she would love one day in the future.


	20. Part Six: The Fourth Hokage II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Somethings I'd like to address:  
> -Naruto and Sasuke are not going to save the day. This isn't a Naruto/Sasuke time-travel story. It's always been Sakura and then Kakashi/Obito. They will not appear in this story except as babies, so if you're waiting for that, sorry, but it's not happening.  
> \- Ryuu was able to defeat Madara for a couple of reasons. First, he planned ahead. Second, he had trained with Madara almost all his life, he knew his father and his skills. Third, he took every advantage and didn't hesitate, unlike Madara. Madara, at his point in the story, is almost 50, he's lost Izuna, Hashirama, Izara and Kagami. He's no longer in his 'prime', although he is still Madara Uchiha: very powerful and intelligent and etc. He was torn between the protecting the village and saving his son, or killing his son after he and Sakura had already lost one child… basically, as much as Madara is an insane shinobi, he's not the same as he was when the village was created. Not the same Madara as canon.  
> -With Ryuu vs Tobirama - it was four years after Madara's death and he'd gotten stronger, don't forget he stole Izuna's eyes from Madara so his sharingan was the Eternal Mangeyko at that point.  
> -The Sacrifices Universe is one which balance plays a big part in. Zetsu is gone, Kaguya's revival has a 0.0000001% chance of ever happening. There's a vacuum of power to fill. Ryuu is the one who fills it for a few reasons, namely Sakura and Madara being his parents. It's not their fault, it's just a horrible circumstance. Sakura and Itachi coming back from the past changed the destinies of so many people across so much time. Indra's curse was broken, the Uchiha are in the village peacefully, etc. Ryuu became the embodiment of the bad things Sakura and Itachi changed, whereas his twin sister became what they hoped for the future. Everything is connected!

 

**Part Six: The Fourth Hokage II**

**Chapter 18**

Minato set his mouth in a firm, thoughtful line. He had known that Ayame was an incredibly strong shinobi, and it was obvious that her brother was as well. But hearing exactly what he had done gave Minato more perspective on what kind of a shinobi they were dealing with. Ryuu was going to be the toughest opponent he ever faced.

"But Lord Second was killed by assassins from somewhere outside the Land of Fire, wasn't he?" Kushina asked hesitantly, voicing what many of those in the room were thinking.

Nawaki let out a bitter laugh, but Minato saw that he hadn't known this about his grand-uncle truth either, and Ayame shook her head in answer to Kushina.

"No," Shikaku verbalised to Kushina and the room. "He was not."

There was a troubled silence. A sudden migraine threatened Minato when he thought about how Tsunade would react to this if she ever found out - which he knew she must and soon. Keeping her in the dark would only harm the village.

"ANBU has the secret records," Ayame said quietly, surprising Minato. She briefly met his eyes. "Lord Tobirama prepared everything in the event of his death, to ensure that the truth about my mother would never be discovered and so that my story could be verified. Not even the Hokage Council knows the truth, though that was mostly in an effort to keep the Shimura out of Uchiha business."

She spoke the last part of the sentence with a bitter twist to her mouth, one that Fugaku, Obito and Kakashi all mirrored.

"But why?" Rin asked, confused. "Why cover everything up like that?"

"It was in order to preserve peace," Shikaku explained patiently. "Could you imagine what would happen if people, other nations, anyone found out that Sakura Uchiha was from the future? If  _you_  were? That the Sage of Six Paths could reach into our time?"

"There would be chaos," Ayame added. "And what would happen if someone made it their mission and discovered how to travel through time?"

Ayame shook her head, and after a quick thought, Minato had to agree with her and with the actions of the Second. That knowledge was dangerous, he glanced at Kakashi who still looked shocked by the news at Ryuu had killed Tobirama. If anyone found out that Team Minato had traveled through time and if anything happened to them because of it… Minato couldn't even begin to fathom a contingency plan.

"Lord Second left orders to ANBU and his successor that all records of Sakura, Madara, and my brother would be hidden, that a gag order would be placed on all discussion of Ryuu Uchiha. He wiped out my brother's existence and left it to me and my mother to take care of the rest," Ayame finished.

The silence in the room was heavy as they digested how much of what they knew and how much of what they'd been taught was not real. He looked into the faces Nawaki and Fugaku. There was acceptance in both their expressions, but Nawaki seemed more agitated than Fugaku, which wasn't surprising. He had been the only one completely blindsided by the revelations if Fugaku had records from his clan already. Kushina also looked troubled, but he could see the concern in her expression. She was worried about them.

"Ayame, tell us about Ryuu."

Minato locked eyes with her, she seemed reluctant, maybe even afraid, but she nodded.

"We grew up during the First Shinobi War. My parents were often away from home, fighting on the frontlines. They were heroes, but our hero was our elder brother Izara. He was born with birth defects that Sakura couldn't heal and so he was unfit for shinobi life. He took care of us while they were away."

"Why is this important?" Fugaku asked impatiently.

Ayame looked at him with some annoyance.

"You, of all people, should know that there is always more to the actions of an Uchiha than just what they say and do. Especially when twisted by emotion," she snapped.

Fugaku inclined his head.

"My father was best friends with Hashirama Senju, and Mito Uzumaki was a very close friend of my mother, so our families were very close. We were eleven when he died, and we both activated our Sharingan's that day. Izara died three months later, and Ryuu activated his Mangekyo."

Obito and Fugaku both looked at her with wide eyes, and then Obito and Kakashi exchanged a glance, something knowing passed between them and not for the first time did Minato wish he knew what his other self had known, what was inside the head of his students.

"That's not a long time," Obito murmured.

"No." Ayame shook her head. "His grief was far deeper than anyone realised for years. It wasn't long after that he discovered my mother's journals."

"And he didn't take it well," Kakashi supplied, understanding dawning on his face. He was reaching fast conclusions, just as Minato was.

"He did not. I knew that something had happened, but I didn't know the truth until it was too late. He was good at hiding things, at hiding his intentions and feelings."

"Must run in the family," Nawaki said.

Ayame looked at him blankly for a moment, before her eyes took on a familiar angry fire. She was at her limit for comments like that from Nawaki, it seemed.

"Yes. It does," she said flatly. "Maybe you'd be the same way if your sister killed your father at sixteen and stole his eyes."

Rin gasped and Nawaki looked a little apologetic.

"He killed Madara at  _sixteen?"_  Obito questioned, clearing shocked by the revelation.

Both Fugaku and Shikaku met Minato's eyes with concern and he understood their worries, not just for their clans and those in the room, but the entire village. Ayame gave Obito a wry smile.

"You keep forgetting that my father is not the same Madara that you knew," she reminded him.

Kakashi frowned behind Obito.

"But - that's -  _how?"_  Obito asked, still disbelieving it.

"I don't know, I wasn't there," Ayame answered. "All I found was his body and his eyes missing." Her voice was tight with pain and she closed her eyes. "I'd assume he used his genjutsu power, it's the only thing I can think that would have defeated my father."

Minato made certain to remember to have her outline his exact powers later. If his genjutsu was powerful enough to hold Madara Uchiha back, they would need a very exact plan to stop it.

"So when did he kill Lord Second?" Fugaku asked, frowning.

"Four years later," Ayame answered. "He planned a diversion by kidnapping Mito, making us think he was after the Nine-Tails, but when we went to confront him he…well, I figured it out and by the time I got back I was too late."

Ayame unconsciously wrapped an arm around her waist. Minato noticed Nawaki see the action and frown.

"Ryuu… Ryuu plans to 'correct' the world," Ayame said, dropping her hands back to her sides. "He thinks that Sakura and Itachi threw off the correct course of the world and destiny and all of those ridiculous things, and aims to right the wrongs they created."

Kakashi clenched his fist and looked away.

"That doesn't make any sense, you know," Kushina said, a frown creasing her brow and voice getting heated. "We're all just living the way we are. It's not like there's another life we can have, and just killing people isn't going to fix anything, you know!"

"Doesn't that mean he wants to kill himself, too?" Rin asked quietly. "I mean if he thinks that the world is wrong because of the changes Sakura made, isn't he talking about himself too?"

Ayame gave her a sardonic laugh.

"Oh, logic doesn't play into his self-righteous reasons for wanting to destroy everything our parents tried to build. He's just twisting his grief for losing our brother and blaming our parents for everything. He's weak and weak-minded."

There was a bitter twist to her voice.

"So he wants to make the world closer to the past that Sakura and you three are from," Minato said.

"That's not going to happen," Obito said, stepping forwards. "He's not going to destroy everything Sakura stood for."

Kakashi scoffed.

"You were her enemy for years and only knew her for five minutes before you died. How would you know what she stood for?"

Obito flushed and Rin rolled her eyes at Kakashi.

"Five minutes is plenty of time! We fought side-by-side against Kaguya, and well, I had to have reports about people close to the jinchuuriki. I knew about her."

"Oh. You really were a stalker, huh," Ayame said, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, shut up," Obito grumbled, he folded his arms over his chest and pouted.

"This is a serious meeting, you know!"

Kushina punched Kakashi and Obito on the head, they both groaned in pain, and Minato fought back some exasperation. All the tension was fading from the room, and even Nawaki watched Kushina's outburst with a softening expression. Minato moved to sit at his desk, drawing back the attention of the room. In the way that well-trained shinobi did, everyone moved to line up before his desk, looking to their leader. Even, he noted with some relief, Ayame. He gave them all a long and level look, his voice was deep and serious.

"Whatever his reasons, Ryuu Uchiha is a threat to this village, its people and similarly to the rest of the world. Our priority needs to be making sure that he can no longer infiltrate the village undetected and protect Obito and Kakashi."

Obito and Kakashi glanced at each other, obviously unhappy with the suggestion that they needed protection.

"And Rin," Kushina said.

Rin gave a tight smile.

"I was already dead by now," she said softly. "What I know…I doubt he cares about me more than a tool to use against Kakashi and Obito."

Obito and Kakashi both took small protective steps toward her, and Kushina gave a pained look, and Minato's chest tightened at the reminder that Rin had never been more than she was now and now her life as a shinobi might be over. Anger boiled in his chest at the man.

"If Ryuu wants to know more about the past that you came from, his best option is to get to your memories," Shikaku said to the boys, his tone thoughtful.

Minato glanced at Kushina and she nodded.

"I can work on seals for them," she said.

"Good." Minato looked at Ayame. "So. You think we have time before he comes?"

She nodded.

"Yeah. We have time, but I guess that amount of time is up to you," she said, a sly smile on her face.

Minato and Kushina frowned, confused. Kakashi and Obito coughed awkwardly, and Rin blushed, looking at the floor.

"Then, we deal with Orochimaru first," Minato said, changing the subject.

"Orochimaru?" Fugaku questioned.

Minato let out a little sigh.

"He's working with my brother," Ayame said, her eyes darkening.

"It's imperative that we have him return to the village without raising suspicions," Nawaki said, his attitude switching from personal to professional in an instant. "He's dangerous and his instincts will pick up on anything unusual, no matter how small."

Minato saw Rin hold back a small yawn and smiled slightly.

"It can wait until morning," he said. "I think you all understand how important it is to remain silent on this matter."

There was a collective murmuring of agreement.

"From this point on, anything having to do with Ryuu Uchiha comes to me directly," he said, looking at Ayame. "If you continue to act independently you will put this mission in jeopardy and I will have you detained."

Ayame narrowed her eyes at him and the tension in the room rose again. Minato didn't look away from her. He wasn't the Third Hokage, someone she could hoodwink and work around. He raised his head and met her squarely, an action that seemed to make her angry.

"You will have me  _detained?"_  She asked through gritted teeth. "I've spent my  _life_  dedicated to this mission and - "

"And now you will trust in your fellow shinobi to continue the mission and work together with them," Minato stated firmly.

"I will not be held back by a - a  _child_  Hokage," Ayame spat.

Minato considered himself a level-headed person, but there were times when he knew he needed to stamp his authority in the room. As the Hokage, he was the authority in the room. Ayame Uchiha was worthy of respect, but she was not above his command. He kept his eyes on her, his eyes sharpening and the atmosphere between them became heated, but before he could speak Nawaki snapped at Ayame.

"That's enough, Aya," he said coldly. "You are addressing your Hokage, you need to learn that it's not all about you."

Ayame flinched at his tone, but her eyes remained angry on Minato. Minato looked back at her calmly, but from the corner of his eye he saw the danger in the room: Kushina. Kakashi, Obito, and Rin, who also saw the rise of her hair, took a few steps back.

"Kushina," Minato said warningly.

Kushina looked at him and immediately backed down.

"Lord Hokage, I suggest we reconvene at another time when everyone has had time to digest and consider the best course of action moving forward," Shikaku said, stepping forwards.

Minato nodded.

"Get some rest," he said to them all.

Ayame quickly disappeared from the room through the window, and Nawaki shook his head looking after her. He was the second last to leave the room.

"From what I understand about Danzo, it's not wise to meet as a group again. I suggest using Shikaku as a go-between, his position as assistant to the Jonin Commander won't make interaction suspicious," Nawaki said.

"Agreed," Minato nodded. He gave Nawaki a look. "Go home, Nawaki. Get some rest and clear your head."

Nawaki breathed deeply for a moment.

"My apologies for my behaviour, Lord Hokage," he murmured after a moment.

"No need. It would be a shock to anyone," Minato replied easily.

Nawaki gave a short nod to him and one to Kushina, who was waiting to the side.

"Good night, Nawaki," she said softly, placing a hand gently on his shoulder for a moment before he wheeled out.

Kushina waited until the door was closed before she turned her angry eyes on Minato.

"Why didn't you tell me?" She asked him, hands on her hips. "I could've helped, you know!"

Minato winced apologetically and Kushina tutted.

"I knew something was weird. The Nine-Tails always got jumpy around the three of them, and then sometimes you'd have these secret little talks. I was just hoping you'd tell me yourself, you know," she said, her anger fading.

"I'm sorry, Kushina," he said lamely.

She waved her hand dismissively.

"I know, I know. I get why you didn't, so don't worry about it. But you know, I still think it's crazy but it's also kinda cool, you know? Like the whole time they were just teasing us!" Kushina's eyes glittered with excitement.

Minato gave a tight smile.

"For the most part, I think they did have fun at our expense," he replied.

Her eyes dimmed.

"But…Obito…"

Minato nodded, his eyes taking on a vacant expression for a moment as he recalled as many moments as he could that he'd had with Obito.

"He must have been in a lot of pain," Kushina whispered.

"In this… other life they had, Obito and Madara were not what we know them to be. It's hard to see Obito as… evil," he frowned, unable to imagine it, no matter how hard he tried.

"Obito's not evil, you know," Kushina agreed. "And we…we were dead. Kakashi was all alone, you know…"

Minato looked at her as Kushina hugged herself. He didn't like seeing his wife, who was usually so strong, look so vulnerable.

He stood and swiftly walked from behind his desk to embrace her.

"That's not going to happen," he said quietly, but determined.

He felt Kushina soften in his arms and she wrapped her arms around him and squeezed tightly.

"We're in this together, no matter what," she said pulling back from him. "I believe in you, Lord Hokage, you know!"

Minato smiled, forever grateful for the way she made him feel like he could do and be anything and everything.

"Let's go home."

* * *

The plan for Orochimaru was simple: they would do nothing until he returned to the village. Trying something outside the village would make it too easy for him to slip away, and any preparations would be suspicious. So until they received word from Jiraiya that they were finished in their mission, it was a waiting game.

Kakashi and Obito were both approved and entered the ANBU ranks. It felt like an odd sort of homecoming for Kakashi, but the hazing was going to have to stop immediately. The thing about ANBU was that most of those in the ranks didn't care about who you were or where you came from, all they wanted to know was if you could do the job and do it right. The others, the ones who did care because of their own insecurities, were the ones that Kakashi and Obito had no patience for. On the first day, they let the comments slide. On the second, they showed them why you shouldn't mess with either of them. Things calmed down after those who tried to be 'funny' at them got out of the hospital.

Kakashi and Obito were assigned to Minato's personal guard, moving and acting at his discretion and direct command, and because they knew he was worried about them and wanted to to be somewhere he had some control and ability to protect them. Kakashi, Rin, and Obito were all given one of his special kunai to keep on them at all times in the case of an emergency. The overprotective sensei thing made them grin with delight, and tease him more often.

Minato kept Obito close to him. After the night of Ayame's revelations, Minato and Kushina invited Obito over to their house for a dinner that turned into a night of confessions, apologies, affectionate hits from Kushina, laughter, and a feeling of contentment that Obito hadn't realised he'd been missing. One night didn't make up for everything he'd done, but they were half-right when they assured him that none of them were the same people from the past. For the first time in years, Obito felt the heaviness he'd gotten used to change a little from remorse to something kinder. He renewed his dedication to protecting those he'd once wronged, beginning with Minato, Kushina, and Itachi.

With some silent aide from Shikaku Nara, Kakashi began his investigations into Danzo and Root. With his prior knowledge of activities and locations, it was far easier for him to remain under the radar, but finding any evidence of collusion with Orochimaru or in general of any illegal activity would be the hard thing.

"You need to understand, if we take Orochimaru, Danzo will free him, afraid of any connection being revealed," Kakashi said to Minato.

Minato's eyes darkened.

"We don't know that," he responded. "It's possible they have a different relationship this time around."

Kakashi grimaced.

"The chances of that being the case are low," he said. "Everything I've seen points to things heading in the same direction. The same secret hideaways, the same routines - " he shook his head. "You don't know what those two did, all the in name of 'protecting the village'," Kakashi said with disgust. "At least with Orochimaru's absence some of his research has been halted, but he'll pick it up again as soon as he can."

Minato gave a heavy sigh. He knew that Kakashi had been especially worried about his classmates, particularly Anko Mitarashi, whom Kakashi had explained idolised Orochimaru and would do anything he asked and be especially hurt once his deeds were exposed.

"So what do you propose we do?" Minato questioned him.

It wasn't an easy question.

"We haven't been able to gather any evidence against Danzo, nor can we infiltrate Root," Minato continued. "If what you say about his training methods is true, I refuse to put a loyal shinobi in danger."

Kakashi had to agree, even if it did take away an option for them to gather intel.

"We need to distract Danzo and Root, while at the same time raiding Orochimaru's labs and containing Orochimaru," Kakashi said with frustration.

"An easy task," Minato replied wryly. "What do you think, Shikaku, Nawaki?"

Kakashi saw the same thoughtful face on Shikaku that he recognised on Shikamaru and smiled a little under his mask.

"If we don't find physical, damning evidence against Danzo, this will end badly for you, Lord Fourth," Nawaki warned. "Be careful."

"Getting everything might be easier than you think," Shikaku said after a moment.

Minato gave him an interested look.

"I believe that Obito and Jiraiya are more than capable of containing Orochimaru," Shikaku said, glancing at Kakashi.

"Obito?" Nawaki frowned. "How so?"

"Kamui," Kakashi answered, understanding. "He can trap Orochimaru inside the Kamui's dimension."

Shikaku nodded.

"And Danzo?" Minato prompted.

Shikaku looked reluctant.

"Well, the best distraction could come from Ayame…" he trailed off.

Minato and Nawaki both grimaced.

"It wouldn't take much convincing for her to act out against him," Shikaku pointed out.

"No," Minato let out a sigh. "It wouldn't."

"And he'd love to get his hands on her," Nawaki muttered.

"Kakashi can lead a team to raid Orochimaru's labs and look for evidence at the same time Ayame moves on Danzo," Shikaku said.

Nawaki looked troubled.

"You'll have to personally intervene soon after Ayame makes a move," he said to Minato. "Things could get out of hand very quickly."

Minato closed his eyes a moment, considering all the options, but they were all tacticians and they all knew the threat that was posed to them and that despite the risks, this was one of the only strategies that might work.

* * *

Jiraiya remembered being told stories about the great founders of the village. He was in awe of them, of the things they did, of how awesomely powerful they were. He wished he could have met them all, but by the time he was old enough to comprehend the strength of such shinobi, only Sakura Uchiha remained. She was a woman who had been beaten time and time again but still stood tall. Her determination and strength was something Jiraiya grew to admire, even more so after he discovered exactly what she'd been through.

Ayame was like Sakura in a lot of ways, but unlike Sakura who always found it in her to forgive, her daughter didn't give second chances. She walked a fine line between the part of her that was deeply feeling and compassionate and the part that was cold and ruthless, a mixture of all her teachers and what experience taught her was necessary.

When Jiraiya was fourteen, he was reverse summoned to the realm of the Toads and brought before the Great Toad Sage. It was then that he was told of his own destiny to train the Child of Prophecy.

"But the world has already undergone great shifts," he croaked, "and to protect the future you must understand the past."

That was when he discovered the truth of Sakura Haruno. He'd turned around and see her there, smiling at him. He was shocked to see her at there at Mount Myoboku since he knew she was allied with the slugs, but everything made sense after he found out the truth.

As he grew older, he learned more and more, deepening his understanding of the world and different, difficult journey's that people went through. It was the hardest thing for him to keep his promise to Lady Sakura and not speak a word of what he knew to Lord Third. Especially when Sarutobi-sensei struggled to understand and help Ayame, who Jiraiya knew he looked on as a child of his own at times.

The last few years he'd spent on the road with Orochimaru had been a constant struggle between friend and watcher, loyalty to the village against a traitor and wanting to save someone he considered a brother. The fact that Orochimaru hadn't attempted to flee, to dispose of him or anything of the like, and that was sometimes confusing to Jiraiya. Orochimaru was not a stupid man, he was one of the greatest minds that had ever come out of the Leaf. If he didn't have an inkling of why he'd been dispatched the way he had been, Jiraiya would have been very surprised. When the news came that Minato was named the Fourth Hokage, they were deep in the Land of Earth, gathering post-war intelligence and unable to return. Orochimaru had been irate for days, though he tried to play it off with indifference, Jiraiya knew better. Still, Orochimaru hadn't left. Jiraiya knew that he'd contacted Ryuu at times, there was little he could do to stop that. There were times when Orochimaru went off for a few hours, but he always returned.

They spent a lot of evenings discussing jutsu, each of them fervently defending their opinions and Jiraiya endured his teammate's insults, realising after a while that this was the closest he'd been to Orochimaru in years and that it was the first time in a long time he'd seen the man relax. It was especially amusing when Jiraiya managed to force him to accompany him to the hot springs, and then Jiraiya would remind about the times when they were younger and used to secretly show Nawaki dirty magazines.

It was with a heavy heart and with some relief that Minato sent the message to come home. He could only hope that Orochimaru wouldn't see through it, although Jiraiya knew better than anyone that unless Minato had devised some flawless plan, imprisoning Orochimaru was going to be close to impossible.

* * *

"That uniform makes you look so mature," Rin teased. "So different from normal."

Obito rolled his eyes and laughed. He put his hand on his hip and posed, grinning.

"Am I as pretty as Bakashi?"

Rin giggled.

"As if you ever could be, loser," a voice said from behind Obito.

Obito jumped, startled and turned to see ANBU Hound in the room behind him.

"What the heck, where did you come from?" Obito exclaimed.

"The window," Kakashi answered flatly, removing his mask and shifting it so it rested on top of his head, just like Obito's did. "Are you sure you're ready? You know what you have to do today and you're not even close to being focused."

Obito rolled his eyes.

"Oh, calm down, Bakashi," he sighed. "I'm good."

"You better be," Kakashi murmured.

Obito saw the worry in his eyes and put a hand on his shoulder. Kakashi met his eyes and Obito stared back at him with confidence and determination.

"This is going to work," he said. "Believe in it, in us."

He felt Kakashi's intake of breath and saw the resolution in his eyes and Obito lowered his hand. Kakashi's eyes drifted over to Rin, who smiled, though she was also forcing it through her own concern.

"You make sure to double check for traps, and don't rely on any previous knowledge because you'll lower your guard and die," she said to Kakashi.

"Oh, you think so little of me," Kakashi feigned hurt.

Rin set her mouth tightly.

"Just be careful, both of you," she said, her hand clenching on the blanket covering her legs. "I wish I could be with you both."

Kakashi stepped forwards to her on one side, and Obito on the other. They both took a hand each.

"You are," Kakashi said to her.

"Yeah, we're always gonna come back to you, Rin," Obito said to her. "'Cause you'll be way too bored without us and we can't have that."

Rin's worry gave way to a grateful, exasperated smile. She squeezed both their hands.

"Good luck."

* * *

The trees were just a blur as Obito ran through the forests surrounding Konoha. He was tense and alert, his senses cast far and wide to catch the first sign of Jiraiya and Orochimaru. In the village things would be happening soon, things that two Sannin would easily be able to sense. He needed to do his part of the mission and return as quickly as he could before the others started. Especially before Kakashi raided any labs, who knew what warning systems Orochimaru had in place.

He caught their chakra signatures a few kilometers off and sped up the pace. Unlike most shinobi, Jiraiya and Orochimaru didn't bother to retreat and hide when they sensed another incoming chakra signature. It was a testament to their confidence and ability. So Obito approached them without suppressing anything, and with his Sharingan activated.

He landed in a crouch in front of Jiraiya and Orochimaru.

"Well, well. Is this the welcome party?" Orochimaru asked dryly. "How disappointing."

Obito raised his head, his face underneath as blank as the mask he wore.

"My apologies," he said blandly. "Lord Hokage has requested your presence in the village immediately and sent me to retrieve you."

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow.

"Is something wrong?"

"It's Ayame Uchiha," Obito said. "She has launched an attack on Danzo Shimura and several ANBU units."

"Well, she finally snapped then," Orochimaru said with a glint in his eyes.

Jiraiya looked pained.

"Then we don't have time to waste," he said. "We have to get back to the village now."

"Right." Obito nodded. "Please allow me to take your arms."

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes, catching a glint of Obito's Sharingan.

"Who are you?" He questioned.

"ANBU Fox," Obito responded. "Please allow me to take your arms. I can transport us all there immediately with my time-space technique."

"Time-space?" Jiraiya asked with some eagerness. "Like the Flying Thunder God."

"I have no need for the Hokage's jutsu," Obito said, growing impatient. He held out his hands. "Please. We don't have time to waste. I need to be touching the two of you for it to work."

It wasn't true, but it was the faster option and he needed to be quick. Orochimaru had a curiosity and suspicion in his gaze, and Obito knew that he wanted to know what Sharingan powers he had.

"I suppose we should try and subdue the Princess," Orochimaru said.

"And Danzo," Jiraiya said, giving Obito his arm. "Let's go Orochimaru."

The moment Obito felt Orochimaru's touch, he transported them all to the Kamui dimension, barely materialising there before he lett go of the snake. True to the level of the Sannin's skill, he understood immediately this was a trap and launched a kunai at the whirling void as Obito and Jiraiya came out of the dimension close to the village.

Obito felt the slice his arm and it flew out behind them, embedding itself with a loud thud in the wooden post of the village gate.

"That's…a very impressive ability," Jiraiya whistled appreciatively.

Obito only nodded, feeling the drain on his chakra. It was something he'd realised early on, that without the body modifications Madara had made on his using Hashirama's chakra, and that his Sharingan was only the regular Mangekyo - not the Eternal Mangekyo - his Kamui used a lot of chakra. He was going to have to be careful of not overusing it and straining his eyes.

"Lord Hokage is waiting for us," ANBU Fox responded to Jiraiya. "It's beginning."

Jiraiya's eyes turned serious and Obito winced slightly, the cut on his arm feeling odd. He hissed with realisation: the kunai was poisoned. He looked at Jiraiya.

"It was too easy," he mumbled, feeling weak. He stumbled slightly, clutching his arm. "Poison. Tsunade," he breathed.

He felt Jiraiya grab him as his body felt more and more sluggish and his vision darkened.

"I got you, Obito," he faintly heard Jiraiya before he passed out, his last conscious thoughts hoping that Kakashi was fine.

* * *

ANBU Hound gave swift and precise orders to the teams who would be investigating the three laboratories. He impressed on them all how important it was to be vigilant at all times. There would be traps. There would be unpredictable danger. It wasn't until the last moment that he told them who they were investigating.

"The Hokage and the council are already in possession of evidence of Orochimaru's treason," he said severely. "Anything linking him to anyone in the village, no matter their rank or position, keep that evidence safe and deliver it to me directly. Understood?"

They all gave their assent. Kakashi had hand-picked these ANBU because he knew they had no connection to Danzo or Root, and he knew that they were all immediately questioning what the Hokage already knew and needed proof of. This mission brought back memories of Tenzo, and Kakashi felt his stomach tighten. He needed to find him, somehow. By now, he could still be in a test tube or have been taken in by Danzo already, or maybe he'd never be found at all since Orochimaru hadn't been able to continue with much of his research while he was away with Jiraiya. He cast away those thoughts and focused on his task.

The lab was eery, dank and dark and once again Kakashi felt underprepared without the Sharingan he'd spent half his life fighting with. He had made sure that all the ANBU teams had either Hyuga, Uchiha or seal masters in them to see any traps Orochimaru had laid, and even though his senses were good at picking up on them, he still relied on his Uchiha teammate to see them. They safely deactivated the traps as they went further into the underground lab. All four of the team were tense but they moved with efficiency and silence, communicating through hand gestures and nods. The rooms they came across were thoroughly searched and the more and more that turned up empty, the tighter the ball of stress in Kakashi's chest became.

Until Kakashi smelled something that was different. A slight odour in the air, a whiff on the almost non-existent wind underground. Kakashi's stomach rolled as he followed the smell to a secret opening in the wall, leading into what he could only presume was once a prison of sorts and was now filled with rot and death.

"If there was any doubt…" one of the ANBU muttered looking at the almost thirty dead shinobi in a pit below them.

Upon further inspection, some were skeletons, others close to it. But when Kakashi saw the bite marks in the bone, he realised that they'd been locked down there for the entire time Orochimaru had been gone and turned to cannibalism to survive in the damp room. He turned away and walked back up to the main floor of the lab.

"Let's keep going," he said quietly, his voice shaking with rage. "We have a mission to complete."

* * *

The second Minato felt Jiraiya and Obito arrive at the village gates, he stood.

"They're here," he said to Nawaki.

Nawaki gave a tight nod.

"It's begun."

Minato's shoulders suddenly tightened. Jiraiya was moving quickly…towards the hospital. Obito's chakra was wavering. A pit formed in his stomach.

"Something's wrong."

"Lord Hokage, don't - you can't leave the tower. We need to proceed as though everything is normal," Nawaki said.

Minato shook his head.

"It's Obito. I have to go," he said. "They're going to the hospital."

"If they're going to the hospital, they'll be going to Tsunade," Nawaki said. He let out a sigh. "Very well. It might be time to let Tsuna in on some of this. She's going to be angry to have been left out of it."

Minato was gone the moment that Nawaki spoke his last word, appearing on the hospital roof, his white robe flapping in the wind. He hurried inside and flew down the stairs to the lower levels, just in time to see ANBU Fox - Obito - taken away and calls for Tsunade. Startled medics saw him and gave little respectful bows.

He caught Jiraiya's eye across the lobby and the white-haired man gave a slight nod of his head, indicating they should meet somewhere more private.

"Jiraiya, what's going on?" Tsunade appeared, brought by the calls for her. She saw Minato and her eyes narrowed. "I don't have time to deal with this now. I'm going to take a guess and say the poisoned ANBU is here because of you two and a snake."

"Lady Tsunade," Minato said her name with respect. "Please. Save him."

Tsunade folded her arms over her chest and gave a grunt.

"Hmph. If you think I'm going to let Orochimaru outsmart me, you've got a lot to learn. Now get out of my hospital, you're distracting the medics."

She whipped around and walked off.

Minato watched her go, hiding his worry behind an impassive face. Jiraiya put his hand on his shoulder.

"He'll be fine. The kids strong."

Minato nodded and they flashed back to his office where Nawaki waited.

"Lord Hokage, Jiraiya."

"Nawaki!" Jiraiya said happily. "Good to see you."

Nawaki gave a little smile.

"You too," he greeted. "Is Obito okay?"

Minato sat behind his desk, his elbows on the table, his hands and fingers entwined before him as he waited for Jiraiya's debrief.

"Orochimaru managed to hit him with a poisoned kunai at the last moment," Jiraiya said. "That's some transportation ability," he said, impressed.

"Inside the Kamui dimension escape is impossible," Minato answered. "Orochimaru will be trapped until Obito can access it again."

"If he's been poisoned, that might be days," Nawaki said, frowning.

"Is what he said about Ayame true?" Jiraiya asked.

Minato nodded and Nawaki filled Jiraiya in on the plan.

"Any moment now then," Jiraiya said. He looked levelly at Minato. "Are you prepared for this and all that might happen?"

Minato gazed back.

"I am prepared."

Jiraiya nodded.

"As long as you understand what's at stake."  _Should you fail_ , went unsaid.

* * *

Ayame was practically skipping as she made her way through the village and down, down, down into the underground labyrinth towards the Root headquarters. Beneath the village, the foundations of the village, where the Roots lived and thrived.

Ayame scoffed and laughed gleefully. She was very excited. When Minato and Nawaki had first approached her, she told the Hokage to go away. She didn't want anything to do with him. Petty, maybe, but she was annoyed at him. Until told her about her mission. After he'd explained it, she'd wanted to shower him with kisses. Finally, finally there were people who understood the dangers posed by people like Danzo - and herself, but at least she was trying to save the village and not build a creepy powerful army and rule it and pretend that wasn't exactly what she wanted. The hypocrisy of the man was even worse than his fear and prejudice to her clan.

Ayame repressed her chakra, focusing only just enough to have her Sharingan activated under her sweep of hair. She came out of the tunnel into a large cavernous space. Danzo's personal little kingdom. They were watching her, she could see their chakra.

A small smirk played on her lips as she walked confidently, a single shuriken spinning the fingers of her right hand.

"Oh, Danzo," she sang. "Why don't you come play with me?"

Two root agents appeared before her. She stopped lightly and looked at them.

"You are not allowed here," they said flatly.

Ayame raised an eyebrow.

"How sad."

She took a step forwards and they drew their weapons.

"Please return where you came from."

Ayame paused again and looked at her weapons. Through her Sharingan she could see the others closing in, forming a circle in the shadows around her.

The shuriken in her fingers stopped spinning.

"I don't want to."

They repeated the order.

"Are you going to kill me if I disobey?" She asked mockingly. "I'd like to see you try."

They were silent behind their white masks.

"I can and I will kill all of you if you don't move out of my way," she threatened.

It took a moment, but they stepped aside and she smiled as if she were the happiest person in the world.

"Oh, Danzo," she sang out loudly. "Don't you wanna talk to me?"

She paused at the stairs, flanked on either side by the two guardsmen, looking at two more guards, and surrounded by others. The doors before her opened and Danzo stepped out of them, looking down at her with a severe expression of dislike.

"How nice to see you, Princess Ayame," he greeted her with derision.

"I know. I am very nice to see," she responded.

Danzo's eye narrowed.

"What is your purpose here? Only the Hokage and those summoned are allowed here," he said.

Ayame pouted.

"Oh no. How troublesome of me. I suppose you didn't want anyone to know about your secret army of sealed shinobi infiltrating the Hokage's ANBU," she said, putting her hand to her hip.

She liked the way Danzo's mouth set in a firm line.

"Your falsities are most amusing, Princess," he responded. "This division of ANBU is elite to protect the village."

"That's so very patriotic of you, Lord Shimura. I must salute you for your lack of ambition and absolute and total loyalty to your Hokage," Ayame mocked. "I just have one question though."

Danzo waited.

"So did Sarutobi-sensei send you off to ally with Hanzo and kill the Akutsuki? Or was that you acting independently with your secret little army?"

Seeing the look of shock and understanding on his face was enough to make her smile at him.

"I really enjoyed watching you do that," she said.

There were swords at her throat in an instant but she didn't move.

"I think the pleasantries have come to an end," Danzo said, his facade dropping and his true loathing for her coming through.

"Too bad, I was having so much fun," she replied dryly. "I just wanted to tell you a few things about my brother and Orochimaru."

"And it was necessary to trespass?"

"As necessary as these blades at my throat are."

She cut a smile onto her face, one that promised pain in the very near future.

"Don't you want to know?"

"I will ask the Hokage," he said.

"Oh, don't bother. He's busy right now with the raids."

That got his attention and her smile widened.

"Didn't you know?"

He walked towards her.

"Speak, Princess," he said lowly.

"Well, by now I assume Orochimaru is in the custody of ANBU," she shrugged, "and all his laboratories are being raided. Who knows what kind of incriminating evidence they'll find about him and my brother and anyone else who was working with the traitor."

From her Sharingan, she saw several of the Root agents disappear from some invisible order.

"Oh. Wonder where they're going," Ayame said to him.

With speed that none his agents could match, Ayame released her chakra, both eyes spinning red into her Sharingan and dropped to a crouch, shuriken flying from both hands at the shinobi who surrounded her and sending a wall of flame out around her, forcing the shinobi who were close and trying to attack her back.

"You will die for this Ayame Uchiha," Danzo growled at her.

"I'm taking that eye from your head," she hissed at him, swords drawn. "And I'm going to destroy everything you have and everything you are."

She had never been more ready for anything, and for just a moment the strongest thought she had running through her mind was that she wished Ryuu was here to savour the moment.

* * *

The door to Rin's hospital room opened and she looked up from her book with surprise to see Shizune standing there. She began to smile until she saw the look on her friends face.

"What happened?" She asked, closing her book and placing it on the table beside her.

Shizune gulped nervously and looked around before closing the door. Rin's fear rose. It was Kakashi or Obito, she knew it. Her heart started to pound.

"I'm not supposed to say anything," Shizune whispered frantically. "But I - I think you should know."

"Shizune, please," Rin pleaded. "Just tell me who it is."

Shizune swallowed.

"It's Obito," she whispered. "He was poisoned. Lady Tsunade is working on an antidote, but he's unconscious."

Rin's breath caught.

"Is he in pain?" She asked, pushing back her blankets.

Shizune bit her lip and Rin knew the answer. She jumped out of bed, ignoring the pain in her chest.

"Where is he, Shizune? Where is he?!"

"Rin, you have to rest!" Shizune shook her head. "You just had surgery a few days ago, your repairs are still fragile."

Rin gripped her by the shoulders.

"Where. Is. He?" She demanded through gritted teeth.

"I - I'll take you there. Please, please just stay behind me and don't run. He wouldn't want you to hurt yourself," Shizune pleaded.

Rin's head and heart protested against the walk to where Obito was, but she forced herself to breathe deeply and be as calm as she could be. Shizune was right. If she hurt herself trying to get to him, Obito would be mad with her, and so would Kakashi.

An ANBU was stationed outside his door and refused to permit her entrance to the room. She glared at him.

"I know who's in there! That's my best friend. I have to go inside!"

The ANBU was unmoved and with frustration, Rin sat on the ground.

"Then I'm not moving from this spot until someone lets me in the room."

He gave a shrug.

"Rin, why don't you go back to your room. I'll call you if something changes," Shizune urged gently.

"He needs me. I'm not moving," Rin said firmly.

She closed her eyes and hugged her knees to her chest.

_I'm right here, Obito. I'm right here._

* * *

"Hound, Cat's found something."

Kakashi turned from the laboratory instruments and followed Boar out of the room. Inside a smaller space, Cat stood before a desk filled with notebooks and handed one to Kakashi.

"I think this is what you're looking for," Cat said, sounding disgusted.

Kakashi took the book and scanned the notes.

Test subjects. Cell manipulation. Stolen children. The First Hokage's DNA and theories about wood-style. Danzo. Another laboratory.

Kakashi gripped the book tightly.

"Gather it all and take it back to the Hokage," he ordered.

"Is this really about Lord Shimura?" Cat asked.

"This is about traitors to the Leaf," Kakashi responded evenly. "No matter who they are."

"But experiments on children…" Cat shook his head. "How could Lord Shimura be a part of that?"

Kakashi kept silent.

"Hound is right," Boar said after a moment. "This intel is top priority. Let's collect it and go. This place is giving me the creeps."

Kakashi watched as his team gathered the books. Maybe now he'd be able to find Tenzo - and he could only hope Danzo hadn't gotten to him first.

* * *

An ANBU agent appeared at the Hokage's window. Nawaki opened it and the ANBU entered in a crouch.

"What is it?" Minato asked him.

Jiraiya moved slightly positioning himself further behind the ANBU.

"Lord Hokage, the Uchiha Princess has launched an attack on Lord Danzo. Lord Danzo requests your assistance."

"Understood," Minato replied. "Where are they?"

"At the Root - "

Before the ANBU could finish his sentence, Jiraiya placed a hand on the mans back and he was paralysed. Nawaki quickly injected him with a sleeping drug.

Minato summoned two of his personal guard.

"Take him to the holding cells," Minato ordered.

"I'll go with you," Jiraiya said.

"I'll wait here for Kakashi," Nawaki said. "Be careful."

Minato nodded.

"It's time."


	21. Part Six: The Fourth Hokage II

 

 

**Part Six: The Fourth Hokage II**

**Chapter 19**

 

_Hound. Root agents on the move._

Kakashi received the telepathic message from Inoichi.

_Relay to the other teams. Send out the back-up teams. Don't kill them if it can be avoided._

_Understood. Good luck._

It had been on Shikaku's urging that Inoichi was informed of the mission. Kakashi and Minato had to admit that he was right in saying that if Danzo was backed into a corner, he'd lash out to save himself. They needed to be warned if they had incoming hostiles, and only the Yamanaka could do that and keep watch at the same time.

Kakashi relayed the message to his team as they moved towards the rendezvous point. They moved silently, watchful of the forest around them. They still had several kilometers left to travel, but knowing Root, Kakashi knew they'd see them sooner rather than later.

* * *

"You forget who I am, Shimura," Ayame spat.

Ayame put her foot on the body of the dead Root agent below her and kicked him off the bridge, staring defiant and excited at Danzo. Blood dripped from her sword onto the wood. Severed limbs surrounded her.

"Not all Sarutobi's students follow his benefit-of-the-doubt teachings," she gave a wicked smile. "We might wear the same headband, but that won't stop me from killing anyone I see fit to die."

Danzo stood on the platform with four guards around him. She could see the chakra signatures of at least ten others just watching from around her. Danzo had held them back, obviously not wanting to risk any more of his little army. Danzo's lips curled into a distasteful sneer.

"Both you and your brother are a disgrace to the village."

Ayame laughed lightly.

"I think my dear brother would be happy to hear you say that. But it begs the question: what does that make you?" She raising her sword, mimicking the stance Tobirama often used. Danzo recognised it, she saw it in his eyes. "A hero?"

Danzo stood tall.

"I serve my village, doing what is necessary and what others cannot."

Ayame lips twisted with disgust.

"I hope you feel as sickened as I do that we are cut from similar cloths," she grunted.

"Indeed," he said looking down his nose at her.

"But there is a difference between us that you will never bridge: you serve your own interests," Ayame growled. "I see you, Shimura. I see that Uchiha eye you stole."

She bared her teeth at him and clenched her sword.

"And I'm taking it back."

Quicker than the two front guards could react, Ayame moved, slicing her sword right to left and sending a wind jutsu at them, severing their necks while Danzo and the other two jumped high and back and avoided the attack. Their heads and bodies landed on the ground in four thumps, and blood spilled toward her feet. She didn't care. She caught Danzo's eye and saw the smug look cross his face and sensed the explosive tags below her feet.

Danzo's guards slammed their hands on the ground and created a barrier around her. Ayame had to work quickly or she would be toast. Lucky for her and unlucky for Danzo, the manipulation chakra was a skill she'd long since developed and the barrier was weak.  _Amateurs,_  she scoffed mentally. Her eyes spun into the second form of her Sharingan, mismatched though they were. Her right eye was her own, a regular Mangekyo, but her left was Ryuu's - the Eternal Mangekyo - with his ability to manipulate chakra.

She threw herself towards Danzo, her Sharingan distorting the barrier enough to allow her to slip through just as the explosion tags went off. The weakened barrier and force of the explosion propelled her forwards, straight towards the waiting enemy. Ayame cursed and reached into her obi as she fell, pulling out her shuriken and launching them at the agents who were forced to avoid them as she prepared herself to land in a roll on the ground.

Danzo entered her field of vision, finally attacking her himself. She landed hard on her shoulder and immediately rolled to the right, narrowly avoiding the wind jutsu punch he thrust down at her, that shattered the wood. Ayame spun on her back, kicking out her legs and taking down the Root agent who came at her as soon as Danzo missed. She used her momentum to get to a handstand and push up to flip over onto her feet again.

The attacks were more relentless, led by Danzo himself and backed-up by his agents, ones far superior to the ones that she'd defeated earlier. She was pushed more than she had been in a long time, and Ayame found herself in a manic, gleeful state of mind as she fought. Elated and enjoying every moment of it, and in the back of her mind knowing that the come down was going to be the worst yet.

Her eyes perceived every movement, every action. She avoided attack after attack, her speed allowing her to strike back with fatal accuracy until Danzo was coming to a point where his precious agents would all be slaughtered, or flee.

Or, have the Fourth Hokage show up just at that moment in all his blond glory.

The pressure of Minato's chakra impressed Ayame. He was commanding with his hard stare and strong shoulders and that very nice white robe he wore. He glanced between Ayame and Danzo, who straightened from his aggressive stance and wiped at his face,

"Lord Hokage," Danzo huffed. "It has been some time since I summoned you to stop this vicious and unprovoked attack."

Ayame hissed at him, but Jiraiya gripped her arm tightly and leaned forward to speak quietly in her ear.

"Don't make this worse, Aya," he murmured.

Ayame turned a glare at him.

"He's a traitor," she growled. "He deserves to die."

Jiraiya gave her a hard look and she let out an irate huff. Minato looked around at the carnage around them; burned wood, broken beams and shattered concrete. Blood pooling from bodies and arms, legs and heads detached from their owners. She saw his jaw clench and had a feeling she wasn't going to like what came next. Minato shouldn't have been so surprised. He knew what she would do, that's why they gave her this mission.

"Jiraiya."

Minato's voice held a command in it, and before she knew what was happening, she felt Jiraiya's free hand slam into her back. Ayame cried out with surprise and anger as the seal worked her way across her skin, paralysing her and cutting off her chakra. Her Sharingan faded away and she before she could fall forwards onto her face, Jiraiya caught her.

"I'll kill you for this," she hissed at him.

He gave her an apologetic look and threw her over his shoulder. She gave a grunting scream of frustration. Faced with only Jiraiya's back, she missed whatever happened next, but she felt the rise of Minato's chakra, heard the surprised gasps and the sudden appearance of a large group of shinobi.

"What is this?" Danzo sounded outraged.

"By order of the Fourth Hokage, you are being placed under arrest pending interrogation for committing treason against the Leaf, the illegal theft of a clan dojutsu, and anything else we discover along the way."

Ayame recognised the Head of Torture and Interrogation speak.

"What farce is this?" Danzo demanded.

"It is no farce, Lord Shimura. If these accusations made against you and the evidence that has been brought forth are false, you have nothing to fear," Minato said calmly. "Enough damage has been done today. You can either follow me peacefully, or be restrained and escorted by ANBU."

There was a heavy silence and then Ayame chuckled as she saw Danzo's feet pass her as he was marched out of the room.

"You sure made a mess, Aya," Jiraiya said to her quietly. "Some of these… they were kids."

There was a tightness in his voice, but Ayame had long retreated into the Ghost and she was keeping her own conscious out for as long as she could.

"They were warriors and they weren't strong enough."

"That's not what your father would have said."

Ayame felt her blood freeze.

"If he had survived, this  _never_  would have happened," she said in a low voice. "Sarutobi-sensei tried to live by the example of Tobi and Hashi, but he failed to understand that both of them would have ended Danzo before this point. Sensei was weak and foolish."

Jiraiya had nothing to say and carried her out in the sunlight to Torture & Interrogation, taking off her seals when she was secured in a cell.

She gripped his throat before he could leave.

"I told you I would kill you for those seals," she said, her eyes cold.

Jiraiya looked at her, his eyes tightening with pain as she squeezed his throat, but he made no attempt to speak and simply stared at her with boredom.

"Stand down."

Minato walked into the room and the ANBU who had kunai and swords at her throat sheathed their weapons.

"Let him go, Ayame," Minato said, folding his arms over his chest and leaning back against the wall by the door.

She did.

"Lucky I'm kind of fond of you," she said to Jiraiya.

He snorted and rubbed his neck.

"I'm not sure that's lucky," he muttered.

Ayame gaze slid from Jiraiya to Minato.

"Is he secure?"

He nodded. She let out a small breath of relief, and the weight on the corners of her mind lifted slightly. The Ghost began to retreat, just a little. Ayame could see that Minato was displeased with her, and she knew that it wasn't just because he didn't like what she'd done, but because he was a good man with a conscious pointed into a direction of morality that she no longer used to direct her own actions.

"Never forget, Minato Namikaze, you asked for my assistance knowing what would happen, and I delivered."

She hoped he understood that his job was more than the happy face, the protector, the vision of strength. She hoped he was prepared for what might happen, for what  _would_  happen. When he didn't respond to her, Ayame looked away and stared at the wall.

"With every new generation, the stories about my parents and the founders become more and more embellished, and dipped in the loveliest shade of heroism and sunshine," she said with a sigh. "They were great men, and my mother was a great woman. They were strong and powerful and unifying and everything the history books would have you believe."

She looked at Minato, who was staring at her intently but she couldn't decipher what he was thinking.

"Do you want to know what people forget the most about Hashirama Senju?" She asked.

Jiraiya moved to the door and she sat back on the metal cot by the wall. Her new home for however long Minato decided. Or until she got bored, after all, she might have had a hand in the designs for the building.

"Why don't you tell me," Minato said eventually.

She gave a wry smile.

"What would you do, if someone tried to destroy the village?" She asked him.

He frowned, obviously wondering where her question was going and how it related to Hashirama.

"I would protect the village," he responded.

"Why not just say it, Minato? Just say it plainly what you would do to the perpetrators."

"I would put an end to the threat in whatever means was necessary."

She shook her head.

"I don't understand why it's so hard to say the words: you would kill them."

He gazed at her levelly.

"Yes. If there was no other option, I would."

She nodded.

"Of course you would. It's your job. So, ask yourself this: would you kill Kushina to protect the village?"

He blanched.

"What are you asking?"

"If you had to choose between the destruction of the village or killing Kushina, what would you chose?" She asked.

"I - "

He couldn't answer and Ayame gave him a sad smile.

"That's what people forget about Hashirama," she told him. "He would kill his wife, children, brother, and best friends to protect the village if they were threatening it. Because there was nothing and no one more important that the future of the village."

Minato stared at her and she could see his struggles in his eyes, and she could see that he was a man who would, when the moment came, put the village first and kill part of himself to do it.

"That is what Sarutobi-sensei forgot. He put friendship and hope above the survival and protection of the village and people he was supposed to care for, and that is a sacrifice I hope you never have to make."

She turned away from both of them and stared at the wall, the conversation was over. She had imparted her wisdom, and now she was tired. She was just so tired. The Ghost was receding, and she could feel the blood on her hands dripping down her arms and pooling around her mind as she closed her eyes and felt the sick satisfaction of the power over life she wielded.

* * *

"Get up, Nohara."

Rin looked up to see Sakiko looking down at her with a disapproving stare. Rin normally would do what the woman said. Sakiko was an excellent medic, and terrifying when she wanted to be as well. But now, when Obito was in pain, she couldn't obey.

"I won't leave Obito. If I can't go inside, I'll stay here," she replied stubbornly.

Sakiko narrowed her eyes.

"You know the protocol of the hospital in regards to ANBU agents brought in, so hush and go back to your room."

"I refuse."

Her stubbornness seemed to surprise Sakiko, whose eyes turned cold. She stepped forwards, and Rin flinched, thinking that she was going to forcefully move her, but instead, Sakiko prodded the unsuspecting ANBU guard in the chest and he gasped and fell to his knees.

"Oh my," she said flatly. "It seems you need a medic."

"That…is… going to… cost you," the guard wheezed.

"Yes, yes, your delusions are quite fascinating," she said, reaching down and helping him to his feet. "Come along then, I'll fix you up."

Rin stared in disbelief and Sakiko clicked her tongue in annoyance.

"Don't just sit there, foolish girl," she snapped. "You owe me for this, Rin Nohara, and I expect full payment in the form of your complete and total recovery."

Rin scrambled to her feet and gave her part-time sensei a wide and grateful smile before rushing into Obito's room. She could hear his heavy breathing when she closed the door and the quiet beeping of the monitor. With hands shaking slightly from nerves and a little fear, she crept closer to the bed, afraid of what state she'd see him in. Her lower lip trembled when she saw how bad he looked. She forced herself to take a deep, deep and steadying breath, straightened her back and shoulders and walk to stand beside his bed. She took his hand in hers. It was clammy, and she swallowed hard. His uniform had been stripped and folded into a bag on the table beside the bed with his mask. He was topless and his arm was wrapped in a bandage with some blood seeping through. His hair was stuck to his forehead with sweat, his entire body coated in a sheen of it, and his eyes and lips were darkened blue and purple.

Rin held his hand tightly.

"You're going to be okay, Obito," she whispered.

Looking behind her, she pulled up the seat beside his bed and sat, never letting go of his hand.

"Lady Tsunade is going to fix you, and you're so strong, Obito," she whispered to him. "So please don't leave me, okay? I can't watch you die again." Her hands shook. "Don't leave me."

Rin pressed her lips to his hand and rested her head on his bed, fighting back worried tears. She didn't know how long had passed when Tsunade burst into the room.

"I guess I shouldn't be surprised," she grunted. "Well, if you're here you should help me out. This poison is a nasty piece of work and the antidote is going to take a while longer before it's ready for administration."

"You've already made it?" Rin asked, eyes wide.

"Who do you think I am?" Tsunade said, eyes hard. "Now make yourself useful or get out. This is going to be painful for him."

Rin bit her lip and reluctantly let go of his hands, restraining him in the leather straps as Lady Tsunade instructed. When she clipped the final one that would keep his head down and then placed the strap between his teeth, she looked at Lady Tsunade expectantly.

"This is a crude method, but considering the danger his lungs are in, it's necessary. You replace the water as I draw out the poison," Lady Tsunade instructed.

Rin nodded and Lady Tsunade gave her a sidelong look.

"This isn't going to be easy," she warned.

"I'm not leaving him," Rin responded.

Lady Tsunade gave her a satisfied smile and then with a jutsu lifted the water from the bowl and moved it into Obito, who screamed in his unconscious state. Rin worked and cried but she never left and when it was done, Lady Tsunade gave her a pat on the head.

"He's lucky to have you, Rin," she said quietly, as Rin sat exhausted beside him, clutching his hand again. "I hope he knows that."

"He does," Rin replied. "They both do, and I'm lucky to have them."

* * *

_Danzo and Ayame have both been detained in T &I, they're waiting for your evidence, Kakashi._

Inoichi's message came through loud and clear.

_Have you heard anything about Obito?_

Silence.

Kakashi frowned.

_He was successful. It appears the Root agents are falling back, our sensors have determined they're heading away from you. Other ANBU teams are in pursuit. Bring your teams home and report to the Hokage immediately._

The connection severed and Kakashi relayed the orders to his team and they continued on to the village as a pit in Kakashi's stomach formed as he realised that something had happened to Obito, successful or not.

* * *

Minato stared at Danzo through the glass as he sat calmly in the center of the interrogation room, his eyes closed as if he had no cares in the world. It made Minato nervous. Danzo either thought they had nothing, or he wasn't concerned about his detainment for other reasons that were sure to be troubling.

He's face was marred by a frown as he recalled the words that Ayame had spoken to him a little earlier, informing him of the weight of the title he held and the toll it would take on him. Minato had not lied to the Third when he said he was ready, that he was prepared. He had known that there would be times when he would be forced to make choices he'd rather not, but her question about Kushina had shaken him. Part of him rebelled against the question, knowing it was ridiculous to think Kushina would ever turn against the village. But he forced that part of himself away, knowing that factual basis wasn't the point of her query. She wanted him to understand his own resolve, to question if he could make those hard choices.

"Lord Fourth."

He was drawn from his thoughts by Inoichi Yamanaka, who had come to stand beside him.

"Inoichi, any updates on the raid squads?"

"They're returning. Root agents had been closing in on them for a time, but something must have happened because they suddenly turned away and fled. Retrieval squads were dispatched, and the teams are on the way back."

Minato nodded, his frown deepening.

"Are there any updates on Obito?"

"I don't know," Inoichi replied. "Kakashi asked about him…" He trailed off. "I didn't tell him, but I could feel that he was distressed in any case."

"I imagine so," Minato murmured.

"Is there anything you want me to do with him?" Inoichi asked, gesturing to Danzo.

Minato took a deep breath.

"Not yet," he said. "I want the Hyuga and the Uchiha clan leaders here first to determine if Ayame is correct that he has an Uchiha eye under those bandages."

Inoichi's face turned hard.

"I can hardly believe it," he muttered. "To stoop to such depths. His dislike of the Uchiha is not a secret, but this?" Inoichi shook his head. "It's disgusting."

Minato said nothing, but he agreed that it was reprehensible.

"I'll be in my office. No visitors to Ayame or Danzo. Don't take your eyes off him," Minato ordered Inoichi.

"You can count on me, Minato," he responded with a grave nod.

Minato turned and left, ascending from the depths of T&I and into the corridors leading back to the surface.

He blinked a moment as he exited the building, blinded momentarily by the light before he was suddenly gone and once again inside his office where Nawaki and Shikaku were waiting for him. Shikaku gave him a blearily tired look when he saw him.

"I don't envy your position," he muttered, shaking his head over the papers he had been looking over. "Such inane work."

Minato gave the hint of a smile.

"And that's only half of it. Nawaki handles the rest."

"You Hokage would be drowning without me," Nawaki attempted to joke, but the mood wasn't right for it. He gave a sigh. "So, Danzo is detained."

Minato nodded.

"And so is Ayame."

Nawaki looked surprised.

"Aya? I don't understand. That wasn't part of the plan."

Minato let out a heavy sigh and moved to sit at his desk.

"If you had been there, you'd have done the same thing."

Nawaki looked troubled and was about to say something when there was a commotion outside and a very loud, very female voice was heard through the walls. The three men in the room shared looks of pain and resignation when the doors of Minato's office burst open and Tsunade Senju stormed into the room, dragging Jiraiya with her.

"This looks troublesome," was all Shikaku managed to mumble before the shouting about Orochimaru started.

* * *

Inside ANBU Headquarters, Kakashi collected the sealed scrolls filled with intelligence from Orochimaru's labs and gave them over to the ANBU Commander.

"Mission successful," he reported.

The Commander gave a short nod.

"This will be reported to the Hokage immediately and sent to the Cypher division. Change and report to Lord Fourth, he has summoned you, Hatake."

Kakashi nodded and walked out, heading into the locker rooms. He sat on one of the benches in the middle of the room and pulled off his mask with a sigh, he was tired after the long and tense day. He shook out his hair and roughly ran a hand through it, his mind heavy with thoughts about Obito and what might have happened.

He barely listened to the chatter around him until he heard something of interest.

"…Danzo and the Ghost!"

Kakashi turned to listen.

"Yeah, they're in T&I right now. I just came from down there."

Kakashi locked away his uniform and changed into his jonin jacket.

"…Tsunade is on a rampage…"

"Oh, yeah, did you hear that Obito's in the hospital? Poison or something."

Kakashi froze and he felt the attention in the room move to him. He turned.

"I heard he's fine. Tsunade fixed him up."

Kakashi gave a tight nod.

"I have to report to the Hokage," he said through gritted teeth.

He felt a hand on his shoulder and saw one of the older jonin looking at him with the kind of compassion that only comes from those experienced enough to understand the deep bonds that form between teammates.

"He's fine, Hatake. Nohara is there and he's a tough kid."

Kakashi tried to relax, logically knowing it was true. He thanked the shinobi and left, heading straight to Minato's office, where he was stopped by an ANBU he knew was Genma.

"You don't wanna go in there," he said, shaking his head slightly.

Kakashi frowned.

"Why?"

"Lady Tsunade's in there. She's terrifying."

At any other time, Kakashi would have smiled. But he wasn't in the mood.

"Thanks for the warning."

"Hey, it's your funeral."

Genma gave a shrug and retreated to his guard position and Kakashi continued to the office, opting to take to the rooftops instead of the tradition route of corridors and doorways. He crouched on the roof below the window, listening to Tsunade's rant a moment before jumping inside the room.

"Is Obito okay?" He demanded immediately, interrupting.

Tsunade turned a harsh glare on him and Minato gave him a looking pleading to be careful.

"What is it with you kids? No damn respect," Tsunade muttered. "Of course he's okay,  _I_  treated him."

Kakashi stared at her.

"But he's not recovered is he?"

A vein on Tsunade's forehead popped and Kakashi took a few steps backward while Nawaki sighed and Minato looked defeated.

"Uh… Lord Hokage, the mission was a success," Kakashi said. "We have the evidence."

That stopped Tsunade in her tracks and she dropped Jiraiya.

"I think it's time you explain what the hell is going on, Minato Namikaze, before I call your wife in here and tell her all about those pesky injuries you never got seen to during the war."

Minato paled.

"Please don't do that."

Tsunade folded her arms over her chest and glared at everyone gathered in the room.

"Stop being such a baby, Jiraiya. Get up off the floor," she snapped.

Jiraiya groaned.

"But there's such a nice view from down here."

Tsunade stomped her heel into his stomach.

"On second thoughts, stay there."

He moaned in pain and Kakashi fought back a sorrowful and nostalgic smile as he remembered those days and moments between Tsunade and Jiraiya before Pein.

"Lady Tsunade." Minato drew back the rooms attention. "I apologise for keeping you in the dark. If you would close the window, Kakashi."

Kakashi complied and waited patiently as Minato explained the complex three-part mission to Tsunade, who remained quiet until the end. A moment passed before she slammed her hand down on the desk, shattering it.

ANBU appeared in the room, poised and ready, but Minato simply stayed seated on his chair before the now ruined desk and dismissed them.

"Tsuna! That desk was made by our grandfather!" Nawaki exclaimed.

"He made extra, they're in storage," she said to her brother. "You shouldn't have kept this from me. And where is Ayame? I'm going to  _strangle_  her."

"Locked in T&I for the time being."

Tsunade stared at Shikaku for a moment before laughing.

"Oh, you fools. That place won't keep her locked in, she practically built it, didn't you know?"

Minato looked pained.

"Of course she did," he sighed. He stood. "Tsunade, thank you for your reports on Obito. Please try to have him able to use a substantial amount of chakra as soon as possible, we must retrieve Orochimaru as quickly as we can."

"You men are really testing my patience." She whirled and pointed at Kakashi. "And you, Hatake. You better go and make sure Rin's getting proper rest. She's probably still clinging to the Uchiha brat now."

Kakashi glanced at Minato, who gave him a look that he knew meant to stay.

"I think you should send out Jiraiya to follow the Root Agents who fled. They might be going after some place else that we don't know about, somewhere with more substantial evidence," Shikaku said.

"That was bothering me too," Minato agreed. "You should get going as soon as possible, Jiraiya-sensei."

"I'll get right on that," Jiraiya wheezed from the floor.

"I'm going to see Ayame." She turned to Nawaki. "You come with me."

Kakashi slipped out the window, ready to go see Obito until he saw Minato staring at him. He paused on the rooftop and waited until Minato came to the window.

"Cypher has the evidence," Kakashi said to him.

Minato nodded.

"Are you all right? You look pale."

Kakashi clenched his jaw.

"I had forgotten…" he trailed off, remembering the stench of that pit of death. He shook his head. "I'm fine."

Minato didn't look like he believed him.

"Go check on Obito, and then meet me in T&I, I want you there when we talk to Danzo," he said.

Kakashi nodded and left, running across the rooftops to the hospital, feeling a deepening sense of desperation to see that Obito was alive. Whatever the state, he just needed to see Obito  _breathing._

He was stopped in the hall on the way to his room by Sakiko Uchiha. He hadn't seen much of her, only sometimes when he'd dropped by to see Rin at the hospital, or sometimes in the Uchiha District.

"Slow down, boy. You'll wear yourself out," she said, her brow furrowed with disapproval. "Obito's not going anywhere, and by the looks of her, neither is Rin." Sakiko clicked her tongue in disapproval. "He doesn't look good, but he's on the mend, so don't be so frantic and disturb him. Go on, Kakashi, before I decide to throw you out for being a disruption."

Kakashi took a few deep breaths and made his way in a less frantic manner to Obito's room. He quietly opened the door and entered, feeling his shoulder sag with relief when he saw Rin sleeping with her head on Obito's bed. The door clicked shut and he padded into the room, gently patting Rin to wake her. She startled awake and then relaxed when she saw it was him.

"Hey, you're back," she murmured. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," Kakashi replied, sitting on the arm of her chair. "How is he?"

Rin sniffed and wiped her face, waking herself up.

"Lady Tsunade extracted the poison a while ago, and he was administered some antidote about half an hour ago, so he's going to be okay but it'll be a few days, maybe a week until he'll be recovered enough to leave the hospital."

Kakashi pursed his lips.

Rin frowned.

"What?"

"The Hokage needs Orochimaru," he said. "They'll try and speed up his recovery as much as possible… only Obito can retrieve him." Kakashi's fists curled in frustration.

Rin looked back at Obito.

"Is it really impossible to leave the kamui's dimension?" She asked.

"There's no way for him to escape, Rin," Kakashi said.

They sat in silence for a few moments.

"I have to go," Kakashi said reluctantly. "Minato-sensei wants me to be there when they question Danzo."

"Where's Ayame?" Rin asked. "If she heard about Obito, she'd be here, wouldn't she? She loves Obito."

"She's in T&I," Kakashi said. "I'll tell her, okay?"

Rin nodded.

"He'd like it if she came. I don't know why, but they've got a really strong bond," she murmured.

"They understand each other," Kakashi replied. "Get some rest, Rin."

She gave him a tired smile.

"Don't be late for Minato-sensei," she said, half-teasing.

"Me, late? Never."

* * *

"I've never known anyone as completely and utterly infuriating as you, Ayame Uchiha," Tsunade thundered.

Ayame winced at the decibels.

"Well, at least I'm good for something," she replied, serving only to anger Tsuna further.

She stormed into the room and stood intimidatingly over Ayame, who looked up at her friend with slight wonderment at how on earth she'd managed to befriend someone as incredible - in so many ways - as Tsunade. Suddenly, Tsuna's expression softened and she sat on the cot beside her.

"Are you all right? Nawaki told me… what you did."

Ayame looked at the doorway and saw Nawaki there. He rolled into the room and the door closed behind him. She hummed.

"I'm perfectly content," she replied easily. "Allies and traitors are all alike to the Ghost."

"You are not the Ghost, Aya!" Tsunade said with frustration.

Ayame looked away.

"It doesn't matter though, does it. In the end, I am Ayame and I am the Ghost. I do what I have to do for the sake of the village, for the future. What I feel doesn't matter."

"You matter, Ayame," Nawaki said firmly.

"Don't be such a damn martyr," Tsunade snapped. "Just be honest for once. You can't hide from us."

Ayame leaned her head back against the wall and closed her eyes.

"I wonder if this is how my father felt every time he spoke to Hashirama," she murmured. "Damn you Senju, so aggressively prying."

She couldn't help the little upwards curl of her lips.

"You damn Uchiha, you'll never escape us," Tsunade said, her voice lighter than before, a little jovial.

"We're your family, Aya," Nawaki said softly.

Ayame slowly, slowly, lowered her head to Tsunade's shoulder, keeping her eyes closed, and just for a moment allowing herself to show how she was really feeling.

" _I'm so tired,_ " she whispered. "I miss mama and papa and Izara."

Tears formed behind her eyelids, escaping to roll down her face.

"You miss Ryuu," Nawaki murmured.

Ayame's throat caught in a small sob.

"Isn't that ridiculous?" She asked, sitting up and staring at her hands, a strange smile on her face. "That I can miss someone who has hurt me so much?"

"No," Tsunade answered quietly.

Ayame felt the floodwaters beginning to threaten and she pulled herself back. It was enough. There was no point in wallowing in things that she couldn't change. She wiped her eyes with her sleeve and lightly slapped her cheeks, giving a falsely bright smile.

"Well. The good news is, Danzo Shimura is finished," she said.

She could see the concern and annoyance in the eyes of her friends, but they said nothing.

"Fugaku and Hizashi are on their way to examine the allegedly stolen eye," Nawaki said.

Ayame blinked in surprise.

"Allegedly?  _Allegedly?_  Do they think I lied?" She asked, outraged.

Nawaki sighed.

"It's confirmation from unconnected sources," he said tiredly. "My word, Aya, Tsuna was right: you are infuriating."

"Thank you."

There was a knock at the door, and they all looked to see a mass of white hair as Kakashi poked his head in.

"I hope I'm not interrupting," he drawled. "But I'd like a word with Ayame."

"If it isn't my favourite little Hatake," Ayame teased.

"Well. I'm the only Hatake, so your sentiments are doubly appreciated," Kakashi responded dryly.

Ayame gave a light laugh and Kakashi stepped fully into the room as Tsuna and Nawaki left, giving her long glances before they turned away and the door closed again.

Kakashi peered at her.

"Have you been crying?"

Ayame raised an eyebrow.

"Me? Crying? Whatever for?"

Kakashi gave her a knowing and slightly amused look.

"You have the same tell as your mother," he replied simply. She felt herself frown. "But that's not what I'm here for. It's Obito."

Ayame stilled at the tone of his voice. Something was wrong.

"You're relatively calm right now, so I assume he's alive," she said with forced calmness.

Kakashi suddenly looked weary.

"Yes, but…" He let out a long breath. "He was poisoned. Badly."

Ayame absorbed the information.

"Tsunade treated him."

Kakashi nodded and Ayame bit the inside of her cheek.

"Rin is with him now, and Sakiko is the medic overseeing his recovery with Tsunade."

Ayame smirked.

"How delightful for those who try to interfere with his recovery."

Kakashi managed a rueful smile.

"He captured Orochimaru, but he's the only one who can retrieve him, and he won't be able to do much for days at least. It's not very good timing for this whole thing," he said.

"But Obito's going to be all right."

She sat back against the wall, feeling relieved. Obito was… she would never say it aloud, never in a million years, but Ayame knew that if she had ever wanted a family, she'd have wanted her children to be like Obito - the Obito she saw when he wasn't weighed down with guilt and regret, and when he was free and himself. That kid managed to worm his way into her heart and honestly, she'd never want it any other way.

Kakashi moved his hands to his pockets and slouched.

"So what are you going to do?" He asked her.

She quirked an eyebrow.

"You're not going to stay here, are you?" He questioned.

Ayame gave a grin.

"I am at the mercy of our oh so noble and fair, great summoner of Toads and occasional Sage, the dear handsome and generous Fourth Hokage.  _Of course,_  I'm going to obey my orders."

Kakashi rolled his eyes.

"Yeah. That was convincing."

Ayame waved him away.

"Move along, little Hatake. I've things to do and you're far too busy to spend time with little old me."

He gave her one last look as he left the room.

"He'd be happy to know you visited."

Ayame stared at the closed door of her cell for a moment, wondering just how much of her that kid was able to see through.


	22. Part Six: The Fourth Hokage II

**Part Six: The Fourth Hokage II**

**Chapter 20**

Above ground in Konoha as day turned to night the lanterns lit the streets casting a warm glow as people made their way to-and-fro, chattering and laughing together. The civilian population was instinctually aware of the strange atmosphere in the village, but they could only understand up to the point that something was happening, but none of them knew what it was. There was no outward sign of anything suspicious, but living in a shinobi village enabled a sixth sense of sorts and although there was a tremor of concern, it didn't extend deep since the shinobi didn't seem to be agitated to the point of concern for them.

The off-duty shinobi who roamed the village kept alert and listening for whispers of what had happened, while keeping an eye on the increase of ANBU security throughout the village. Many subtly ensured they were prepared in case they were called into action for whatever the Hokage was preparing for. Minato Namikaze was young to be sure, but he had earned the respect and fear of his fellow shinobi. His age mattered little when they were reminded of just how far above them he stood. Though some were harder to convince than others, the shinobi of the Leaf would have faith in their young leader until it was broken.

Hiruzen Sarutobi was not blind to the atmosphere. He sucked on his pipe as he sat in quiet thought in his home, wondering if he should be concerned that he hadn't been involved in whatever it was that Minato had put into place. When night had truly fallen, he was both surprised and unsurprised when an ANBU agent appeared before him and summoned him to Torture and Interrogation.

Elsewhere in the village, Kushina Uzumaki shivered with a sudden chill as she stirred the pot of food on the kitchen stove. She knew it was unlikely her husband would come home, he'd warned her as much, but if he did, she wanted him to have something to nourish him. A little wrinkle creased her brow as she frowned, she could feel the Nine-Tails becoming restless again. She knew that even if she asked, Kurama wouldn't tell her anything. Still, she had made some small progress with him after the revelations that in the past of Obito, Kakashi and Rin, he was extracted from her. At the very least, they were both in agreement that it would definitely not happen again. The consequences for both of them were greater than the cons of their current situation. But Kushina was worried because as much as Kurama hated her, he hated and feared Ryuu Uchiha more, and if the Nine-tails was afraid, it was cause for alarm.

In the Uchiha District, Mikoto watched Itachi furrow his brow in concentration as he practiced twirling three of his kunai in his fingers, a trick he'd learned without her knowing how or when. He was such a bright child, more serious than others, but he still smiled. She knew that it was the influence of Obito and Kakashi, who had forced the quiet and shy Itachi to socialize. If he didn't have them, if they hadn't introduced him to Shisui, Itachi would have been so much more isolated. Mikoto had seen what isolation did to children like Itachi, and she was always grateful to those boys for helping him. She gave her son a soft smile and placed a hand on her lower stomach. It wasn't quite time yet, it was a little early to be certain, but Mikoto was sure that soon Itachi was going to be an older brother. With role models like Obito and Kakashi, she knew that he'd take to the role. But in the back of her mind, Mikoto was worried about Ryuu Uchiha's plans for her son and for the village. She was glad that the Fourth trusted and relied on Fugaku, but with him being away from home so often and that she would likely be indisposed soon, Itachi's safety worried her, and what did it all mean if she would have another child. Would that child be involved to? The Uchiha couldn't quite seem to shake off its past demons.

Unaware of his wife's dilemma and deep underground in the chambers of the Torture and Interrogation department, Fugaku stood with Hizashi Hyuga and listened to the request of the Hokage with a barely controlled temper. Though there had always been a little tension between the Hyuga and the Uchiha from old grievances, Fugaku sensed the anger rising in Hizashi. One thing he knew they could both unite on was that the theft of either clans dojutsu was cause for war. If one of their clans was targeted, then the other would surely be on time.

"I hope you are prepared for the consequences should Danzo find a way to maneuver himself out of this," Hizashi said seriously. "That man is capable of anything."

"So it seems," Fugaku said tightly.

Minato didn't respond to them, he merely informed them that Fugaku would appear to be the only examinee of the eye, whilst Hizashi used his Byakugan where Danzo could not see him in an attempt to determine if he used seals or something else to distort Fugaku's vision.

Inoichi and Shikaku entered the office of the Head of T&I with the results of the Cypher Divisions examination of the evidence Kakashi and the other ANBU teams had collected hours earlier.

"Whether or not he has a Sharingan eye behind those bandages, Danzo Shimura is finished," Shikaku said darkly. "His ties to Orochimaru's inhumane experiments are indisputable. They found messages in his script with his seal, orders and more."

Minato's expression hardened.

"Over the course of the war he provided Orochimaru with orphaned babies and children and the First Hokage's DNA, trying to create another wood-style user," Inoichi explained coldly and with disgust.

The shock and disgust between the clan leaders was palpable. Minato breathed deeply, satisfied but unhappy at the mounting evidence against a man who had served the village for many, many years.

"Fugaku, Hizashi, let's begin."

* * *

Kakashi greeted the Third Hokage at the doorway leading down the stairs to where Danzo was being held.

"Ah, Kakashi. Are you to be my escort?" Lord Third asked pleasantly.

Kakashi inclined his head respectfully.

"And I'm here to inform you of today's events," he replied blandly.

The Third looked at him with serious interest and waiting. Kakashi stepped aside and allowed him to enter. They walked together leisurely as if taking a stroll through the park.

"Both Orochimaru and Councilman Shimura have been arrested for treason."

The Third paused a moment but did not show much more of a reaction, and then continued walking as if they were strolling through the village on a pleasant spring day.

"For these events not to have reached the rest of the council is impressive," he Third murmured after a moment.

"Access to the building has been denied to anyone not involved in the S-ranked missions. As you might imagine, Councillors Homura and Kohara are very displeased at being kept out of the loop by the Hokage," Kakashi replied. "The sensitive nature of this mission meant that many were left out of the planning." He gave the Third a sidelong glance. "Councilman Shimura is currently being examined on suspicion of dojutsu theft."

He saw the Third's jaw clench, but he remained silent.

"Ayame Uchiha has also been detained for launching an attack on Danzo and the ANBU Root division," Kakashi informed him.

"And what of Orochimaru?" The Third questioned, sounding far calmer and unaffected than Kakashi knew he was.

"He's also detained, but at the moment we are unable to access him for reasons I'm not at liberty to reveal, my apologies, Lord Third."

The Third nodded but Kakashi could see the tightness in his eyes and knew that he was displeased and running through all the consequences these drastic actions the new and young Fourth Hokage had taken, and he didn't envy anyone to ever be named to the seat.

"So where are you taking me now?"

"The Hokage wishes to speak with you, but Ayame Uchiha has requested to speak with you first."

"Very well," he said with resignation. "I suppose it's time for things to be said."

Kakashi remained silent as he guided the Third through the dim hallways and towards Ayame's current cell.

* * *

Ayame rolled her head to the side look at the door as she heard it being opened. She was laying on the cot and growing very bored with her forced captivity. She saw the familiar figure of her old sensei, and heard Kakashi's low murmur as he closed the door. The silence echoed off the walls, and she could feel the turmoil rolling off him and with a heavy sigh sat up and looked at him.

"If you're really that shocked then I underestimated your propensity for stupidity, Sarutobi-sensei," Ayame drawled. "And don't look at me like that. I told you this day would come and it's your own blindness that led to it."

"You have always been so sure of yourself, Ayame. You might forgive an old man for second-guessing what was right when victory was the only thing that ensured our survival," he responded.

"Always the diplomat. You only wanted victory, even at the cost of true innocents," she said with a cutting smile. He didn't give any outward reaction, but she saw the flash of regret in his eyes and her smile became sharper. "Are you angry with me, Sarutobi-sensei? You can be honest, I can take it."

He shuffled slowly forwards and sat heavily beside her. She shifted slightly to make room for him. He stayed there quiet for a moment, thoughtful and she waited.

"You don't see me as someone you can trust, do you?" He asked her.

Ayame stared ahead.

"That's not entirely true," she replied. "Now that you're retired, I trust you more."

"But I was not worthy of your trust as Hokage," he stated.

"No," she said without hesitation. "You were not. You let yourself be too influenced by others, I didn't trust you to do what was necessary even when it was hard."

He paused.

"You speak of Danzo."

"Of course I do," Ayame spat. "You're not the only one whose friendships were forged in war and bloodshed, but you couldn't rise above individual loyalties to stop the damage he was doing. Your blindness forced me into situations I should never have had to be part of," she said bitterly.

There was a troubled look on his face.

"I have never asked you more than you were willing to do, Ayame," he said. "Whatever other actions you took were your own."

Ayame laughed, but it was mirthless.

"I suppose you would think that, but nothing I've done in my life has been by choice. The only thing I ever wanted was taken away from me before I could even voice my desire for it."

"You would have made a good Hokage," he said, giving her a soft smile.

She gave him a look, her eye narrowed. She didn't like that he had figured that out, that silent dream she'd had as a child.

"Have you really not figured out my mission? Why I was given it?" She paused, not replying to his comment. "Have you really not figured out the truth about my mother?"

"You give me too much credit," he said wryly.

Ayame rolled her eyes.

"You're called the Professor for a reason, sensei. If you haven't thought of a few theories, I'd be sorely disappointed."

He gave a low chuckle and she waited, staring at the wrinkles on his face.

"I know your mother was more than she appeared," he said after a moment. "It was clear there was a great secret being protected by the founders and by the Nara."

Ayame smirked.

"Theories, sensei?" She questioned him, knowing that her lack of denial was understood and was an encouragement for him to continue.

He shook his head.

"Do not play games with me, Aya," he said sharply. "I am tired and today's events are enough upheaval for me. The Hokage has summoned me."

Ayame let out a little sigh and decided to give him a little nudge in the direction of the truth and see what he'd make of it.

"Minato was always going to be the Fourth Hokage, and he was always going to be the one who I trusted because Sakura Haruno told me that you wouldn't be able to separate your ties with Danzo before it was too late," she said just as sharply.

He turned to her, catching the use of her mother's true surname and stared at her for a moment. She saw the calculation in his eyes, all the years of little clues coming together.

"I would imagine your more outlandish theories hit closer to the mark than you realize," she said wryly, looking away. "Come find me when you want to know the truth. Minato might tell you something, but if he doesn't, don't be offended, it's probably out of respect for me and my mother and his little team who are also involved in all this and always have been."

Knowing she was finished from the tone in her voice, the Third stood and walked to the door, pausing there before opening it.

"Ayame. If you ask it of me, I will be your ally against your brother."

She blinked in surprise and stared as he gave her a sad smile.

"I must take responsibility for my role in all of this. I might not know the reasons for Ryuu's betrayal, but I saw his decline and did nothing, just as I closed my eyes to Danzo."

Ayame twisted her lips.

"You won't survive the encounter."

He gave her a long look.

"Neither will you."

* * *

She watched him turn and close the door before she smiled, closed her eyes and leaned back on the wall again.

Danzo was secured in the center of a large domed room, completely restrained in his chair by chakra seals, and secured to the ground with chains. The chains were added after the confirmation of Danzo and Orochimaru's partnership, and the ANBU lining the walls were all on high alert for anything and everything.

Minato had been informed that the Third was meeting with Ayame, Kakashi would be along with him soon enough, and it was time for Fugaku and Hizashi to investigate the eye. Hizashi activated his Byakugan and peered into the room, studying Danzo. He gave a heavy sigh and clenched his jaw, giving Minato an imperceptible nod. Minato pursed his lips. He saw the tension in Fugaku's shoulders.

"Ayame is many things, but she wouldn't accuse someone of dojutsu theft without proof," Fugaku said gruffly, visibly upset. He looked at Minato. "If you - I can't go in there or I'll kill him."

"You would be within your rights as clan leader," Hizashi growled. "My brother would never let this kind of disrespect pass without severe judgment."

Minato gave them both troubled looks and just as he was about to speak, Kakashi opened the door and was followed inside by the Third Hokage. Both Fugaku and Hizashi looked at the Third with barely disguised suspicion, and he looked back at them evenly, not showing any emotion.

Minato met his eyes, and a moment later, the Third looked through the glass to Danzo. Kakashi closed the door quietly and stood beside it. The Third greeted them all and Minato presented the evidence against Danzo to him. The Third listened, his face growing pale, and Minato looked on him with some pity but was filled with mixed feelings about the courses of action the man had taken or not taken.

"Will you allow me to speak with him?" The Third requested.

Minato gave a nod, and the Third entered the chamber, while they all stood by the window and watched the interaction silently.

Danzo's eye moved to the door as it opened and his face twisted with a scowl.

"So you came," he murmured.

Lord Third was quiet for a moment.

"What sorry old men we've become," he said.

Danzo closed his eye and gave a low chuckle.

"It must be nice to walk free with such a heavy conscious," he said spitefully.

"Is it true?" Hiruzen questioned. "Your eye."

Danzo didn't answer.

"I am sorry, old friend."

Fugaku gave a low scoff and folded his arms over his chest at the sound of regret in the Third's voice.

Danzo opened his eyes and narrowed his gaze at Hiruzen.

"We will see how sorry you'll be when this foolish child of a Hokage finds himself in a situation where he needs what only I have been able to provide this village, who will he turn to? The Uchiha? Their Princess?" Danzo scoffed and Minato's face turned hard. "She's more of a threat to the village than anyone outside it."

"Ayame Uchiha is the most loyal Leaf ninja we have ever produced," Hiruzen answered, his voice turning hard. "You have always been against her for reasons I do not understand. If you cannot see that she is not like her brother, then you have never truly seen her."

"I have seen more of her than anyone else," Danzo hissed.

"And how would you have done that?" Hiruzen asked, his voice light but tone suspicious. "She has spent more time dark in ANBU and away from the village more than she has in it, in both times of war and peace."

Fugaku folded his arms over his chest and Hizashi looked at Minato, who stared resolutely at Danzo who once again closed his lips and refused to speak. Suspicions continued to mount against the man, and surely he understood that. Hiruzen turned to leave but paused when Danzo spoke again.

"Are you sure you want to allow this naive Hokage to proceed with this farce of interrogation on me?" He questioned, almost mockingly. "You understand, don't you?"

Minato couldn't make out the expression of the Third's face, but he didn't respond and entered the room where Minato and the others stood and looked at them with a blank expression before he gave Minato a long and resigned look.

"I fear I have left you a heavy burden," he murmured, looking down a moment before meeting Minato's gaze again. "Do what you feel you must, as is your right as Hokage."

Hizashi turned to Minato when the Third left, and Minato saw Kakashi hanging back looking at Danzo through the mirror with a coolness in his expression. There was a tightness in his eyes, and Minato wondered what kind of history Kakashi had with the man specifically because there were things that he knew Kakashi hadn't and wouldn't share.

"So what will you do?" Hizashi asked solemnly.

Minato turned his attention from Kakashi back to Danzo Shimura, his shoulders and chest feeling burdened, and set his mouth in a firm line.

 _That,_  he thought,  _was a good question._

* * *

Obito woke groggily to the whispered voices of the nurses around him. Their voices were incoherent and quick, speaking in hushed tones. He could feel an ache from his arm, and fatigue through his body. The voices slowly started making sense and he heard a few words that took a moment to sink in.

It was gossip about Danzo. The voices faded and he heard the click of the door to his room and he took a deep breath, filling his lungs completely before letting it go and slowly blinking his eyes until he grew used to the light in the room.

An unusually soft but familiar voice roused him into complete consciousness.

"Finally awake, are you?"

Obito looked towards the corner of the room and saw Ayame standing there, arms folded, leaning across the wall, looking out the window. He glanced around, but neither Rin or Kakashi or Minato-sensei were there.

"I sent the kiddies home to rest. They've been here for days," Ayame said as if knowing what he was thinking.

Obito swallowed, his mouth feeling thick and dehydrated. He glanced around and saw a glass of water beside his bed. Ayame made no move to help him sit without struggling, she just continued to stare out the window. It stung a little that Kakashi and Rin weren't there, but he could understand the reason why.

"How long?" He asked, his voice croaky.

"Five days," Ayame replied. "It was a nasty poison, and Tsuna wanted to keep you under to heal without interruption. Minato wasn't too happy with that."

Obito wiped his eyes.

"I need to go to Minato-sensei," he murmured.

Ayame turned her head to stare at him, and Obito paused, seeing the look in her eyes.

"What is it?"

"Last night Danzo escaped with help from his sleeper ROOT agents."

Obito froze.

"A lot of evidence came to light during his time in Interrogation," she said with a cruel smile. "There's going to be an overhaul of the Hokage council. Those old bats will be stripped of their positions for their deceptions to both Lord Third and the Fourth. It's been an interesting few days."

"But he's escaped."

Ayame nodded.

"Don't worry, he'll be found - eventually. He's signed his own death warrant."

Her voice held a certainty to it and her eyes were cold enough to make Obito shiver. He took another drink of water and breathed deeply, taking in the information. He glanced at Ayame, who had returned to staring out the window and couldn't work out what kind of mood she seemed to be in. She was thoughtful, but there was a coldness to her words and a cruelness in her eyes. She was unhappy about something but excited at the same time. Obito clenched his jaw.

"I guess they need me as soon as possible, right?"

He rubbed his arm and berated himself for allowing himself to be injured like he was.

"Get dressed. You don't have time to sit around, Obito. It's been decided that Tsunade is going to retrieve Orochimaru with you. She's about the only one who'll be able to do it without dying, so get up and go to Minato. I've got something to do."

"What will you do?" He asked, feeling an odd sense of foreboding from her words.

Ayame only smiled at him, lifted her fingers and disappeared.

* * *

Obito's retrieval of Orochimaru added days to his stay in the hospital. Without Tsunade there to restrain her ex-teammate once Obito brought him to the physical world, he was sure that things would've gone badly - he wasn't in good enough condition to handle the snake on his own and no one wanted Minato involved more than he had to be, as much as Minato hated watching others do the work for him. In the unlikely event Tsunade failed, the oddly distracted Ayame was there as back-up. Orochimaru was furious and destroyed part of the T&I lower section, and injured a few ANBU agents before he was eventually shackled by chakra restraints.

Kakashi, Obito, and Minato all noticed the look in Orochimaru's eyes whenever Obito was around or mentioned. Kakashi knew it was the way that the snake used to look at Itachi, with lustful and gleeful greed. Minato had never seen that side of the man he had always admired before, but now since his sins were in the open, Orochimaru didn't bother to hide it. It was unsettling to them all, particularly Obito who know knew he was going to have to watch his back more carefully now that a snake had his twisted mind on his eyes.

Even more shocking to the village than the betrayal of Orochimaru was the news about Danzo Shimura. He had been a stalwart pillar in the community and many couldn't believe it, until the news of his escape and subtle spread of information about his involvements with Orochimaru's experiments. People slowly began to come forward with their own admissions about his underhand dealings with them or their families in the past.

Homura and Koharu were beyond furious at what had occurred without them being informed of anything. It took some time before they were calm, and Minato was thoroughly surprised at what the pair decided to do. Danzo's interrogation had revealed that Homura and Koharu, and even the Third, had some knowledge or at least some suspicions of what he was doing. Instead of distancing themselves from it, they took on that burden themselves, taking any blame from Lord Third, to ensure the village wouldn't lose faith in its leadership. The Hokage couldn't be tainted, and councilors could be easily replaced. They spoke to the clan leaders with their heads held high and dignity intact, and everyone in the room knew what they were sacrificing for the village. Despite their own feelings towards what had been done, the leaders of the clans felt respect for the two who they had to admit had always acted in the service of the village. Despite that, they became quickly hated by the villages who spread rumours and were not aware of the truth, and to ride out the storm retreated into a short exile, telling Minato that they would respond to his call should he need them.

Ayame had watched everything unfold with mixed feelings. As glad as she was that the old bats were all gone from the council, she felt sorrow for the Third, who had never looked more tired, and as pleased as she was that Danzo and Orochimaru had been exposed, she was equally angered by Danzo's escape from the justice he deserved. She was sure that wherever he was, Ryuu had enjoyed the spectacle of the last week, and if Ayame knew Danzo, she knew that she and her brother were on his list of things to take care of, and she could hardly wait for the day he came for her.

The village only needed to wait a few days longer for Jiraiya's return before anyone who still didn't believe in Danzo Shimura's deceit finally had to admit they were wrong.

* * *

Minato looked up in surprise when the door to his office burst open and an unusually harried looking Kakashi appeared.

"Is it true?" He asked, breathless. "About Jiraiya?"

Minato put down his pen and sat back in his chair, taking in Kakashi's appearance. He was struck by the frantic hope in his usually apathetic eyes. Minato didn't need to ask what he meant and he didn't need to hide anything from Kakashi in any case.

"Jiraiya returned last night with a male child from a hidden laboratory."

Kakashi tensed.

"Is he…alive?"

Minato, curious about his reactions, nodded.

"He's being monitored at the hospital by Tsunade herself," he said. "Is this something you know about?"

Kakashi swallowed and his eyes drifted away for a moment in thought.

"Perhaps," he replied. "If he's… if it's him I - " Kakashi cut off, oddly emotional.

"He was important to you?" Minato asked gently.

Kakashi nodded and Minato glanced at his paperwork before smiling and standing.

"Shall we go together?" He suggested.

"Thanks, sensei," Kakashi said quietly.

There were only a few and far between moments when Kakashi let his guard fall. Minato still found it difficult to reconcile Kakashi's adult mind with his young body and looking at his worried and hopeful eyes and fidgeting fingers, he truly appeared to be the young teen he looked to the world. On the short walk to the hospital, Minato kept a steady flow of conversation with him though Kakashi barely responded, seeming too distracted.

They both froze at the same time, feeling the same sense of danger, and then they felt the spike of chakra. Minato placed his hand on Kakashi's shoulder and transported them to the roof of the hospital.

"It's Danzo," Kakashi said. "It has to be."

Minato pressed his lips tightly and nodded. He could sense the chakra of the disgraced councilman. Kakashi looked panicked, and Minato kept a tight hold of his shoulder to stop him rushing off. Wordlessly he warned Kakashi of the more immediate threat: they were surrounded.

He felt Kakashi tense in anger and let go of his students' shoulder, only managed to appear calm. Inside, Minato was seething with anger.

"I suggest you consider what you're doing," he said aloud, his voice hard. "You are shinobi of the Leaf and I am your Hokage."

Neither Minato nor Kakashi moved when the ROOT agents closed in on them, stepping forwards so they were more clearly seen.

"We serve Lord Danzo," came the robotic reply.

Minato narrowed his eyes, debating for a moment on capture versus kill. He glanced around at them all, knowing that he was standing on the roof of the hospital, a place he was loath to fight at considering the people inside. He needed this to end quickly.

"You shouldn't threaten Minato-sensei in front of me," Kakashi said, the sound of his Chidori cutting through the air, his anger palpable. "That was a mistake."

Minato's thoughts echoed Kakashi's words: they shouldn't have threatened his precious student. The pair of them moved, Kakashi straight ahead and Minato using his famed speed. There was no hesitation in either of their movements because as much as it caused Minato pain, Danzo was a traitor and this was an invasion of his village with the intent to harm those under his protection.

And Minato couldn't forgive that.

* * *

Red eyes glowed in the darkened room as trespassers and traitors descended. Ayame licked her lips in anticipation of the coming battle. She was hidden beneath the bed, holding the railings beneath to remain invisible even though she had already become the Purple Ghost.

The foolish children Danzo had brainwashed to do his bidding failed to secure the room completely; not one of the four bothered to check under the bed. Silent, slow, predatory, The Purple Ghost waited. She was not like other shinobi, whose heart raced during their missions, who mind whirled and imagined the outcomes. Her heart was slow and steady, her mind clear, eyes sharp. She could see the chakra of those in the room, she could hear them breathe, she was not going to die here.

Her spine tingled when she heard the soft but so familiar tap-tap of his staff as Danzo entered the room. She knew that he was only there himself because he needed to confirm the identity of the child Jiraiya had found in the test tube in one of Orochimaru's laboratories before he took the poor kid away, otherwise it would have been a faster mission.

The moment she heard the door softly click shut, she lowered herself to the floor, flexing her fingers to give them back some feeling after so long clutching the frame, before reaching for her prepared weapon. With her sharingan, she could see where all the shinobi in the room were. Four ROOT agents in each corner of the room with Danzo approaching the side of the bed. She had a split second to act before they noticed her.

She slammed the paper seal on the bed above her and activated it, creating a barrier seal around the boy and his bed. She heard Danzo's hiss and rolled from under the bed, flinging out her weapons and pushing herself up to standing at the same time, weaving to avoid the attacks coming at her and throwing her pre-prepared chakra infused shuriken at the small ink spot on the ceiling. The moment it hit, her secondary seal activated and they were all trapped inside the room. She was nothing if not prepared.

"You fool," Danzo growled, furious.

Ayame didn't have time to smile. She ducked immediately, missing the attack from his agents, and swiped up with her sword as she twisted around and felt the blade as it slashed through clothes and flesh and muscle and bone. She heard a gasp of pain and before the body had fallen to the floor and she had already moved to her next victim.

Danzo stood at the doorway behind his two remaining subordinates, glaring at her in a way that made Ayame grin. His agents were stoic and ready for attack, but she could sense the unease, the fear.

"I would have been so disappointed if you didn't come, Danzo. But you did, and it makes me so excited."

She licked her lips and he looked at her with disgust, his mask of indifference to her falling away to reveal the depth of his loathing. Ayame practically shivered with excitement at such a foe.

"This barrier will not hold me," Danzo said to her.

"I don't care," Ayame shrugged. "I like the chase, and traitors are the best prey."

"I have only ever acted on behalf of the village, you will never understand what I have done or why," Danzo said, his voice edging into frustration. "You're naive and foolish, like - "

"Like who?" Ayame challenged. "Everyone who isn't you?" She barked a laugh. "You think that only you can protect the village? You think that no one else walks the dark paths that are necessary, how arrogant you are."

Danzo hissed through his teeth and one of his subordinates attacked her. Ayame twisted her body, seeing Danzo begin to work on the seal behind him, and simultaneously pouring lightning chakra into her sword, so that when she flipped backward and dropped her sword midair, her foot connected with the hilt, sending it into the unsuspecting shinobi who'd attacked her at a speed to fast for him to dodge.

She landed on her feet in a crouch, the shinobi sprawled on the floor in front of her, dead from electrocution, and felt the first fatigue from the drain on her chakra. The final ROOT agent stepped forward to guard his master.

"You can't have your little experiment," Ayame bared her teeth at Danzo. "If you want him, try and kill me. But you don't have much time, Tsuna will be here any minute - "

That was when they all heard the sound of a thousand birds singing and felt the release of chakra from the Hokage.

Her grin widened and Danzo scowled.

"Kill her quickly."

* * *

The rage rolling off Tsunade Senju was enough to make the entire hospital shake more than the release of killing intent was causing its inhabitants to shudder and stop.

"Using my goddamn hospital as a battleground - "

Tsunade's voice was dangerously low and angry. Obito held Rin's hand tightly, keeping her against the wall and out of the way while Tsunade clenched her fists and contained herself, barking out orders for evacuations of the non-critical patients. Worry flooded him as he cast out his sensors and felt Ayame engaged in battle and felt the approach of both Minato-sensei and Kakashi. He was so focused on sensing what was happening in the flurry of movement within the hospital, he didn't notice Tsunade's approach.

"And what the hell are the two of you doing just standing there?"

Tsunade loomed threateningly over them.

"Waiting for orders," Rin answered, somewhere between meek and confident.

Tsunade narrowed her eyes and Obito looked back at her with a nod. He was ready and would have left already to get to Ayame if Rin hadn't been there.

"Shizune!" Tsunade called. The girl appeared by Tsunade's side, ready for orders. "Have Rin help you. Keep her from overextending herself."

"Yes, my Lady," Shizune nodded.

"But - "

Rin looked to Obito but cut off when she saw the renewed anger and impatience dawn on Tsunade's face. Obito gave her hand a squeeze and let her go with Shizune.

"You come with me." Tsunade gripped him by the collar and turned swiftly, dragging him along with her as she stalked down the halls. "You're basically fine, but you're going to go and get Ayame for me so I can kill her."

Obito wanted to argue, but the look in her eyes would have made even Kakashi back down. Tsunade let him go and they continued swiftly, everyone else stepping aside to let Tsunade through.

"That damned pervert," Tsunade muttered. "He knew that boy was going to draw out the traitor, I'll never forgive him for involving the hospital in this."

"I think Ayame put a barrier around the room," Obito told her.

Tsunade scoffed.

"Of course she did, the self-sacrificing moron," she responded grumpily.

"I can get in there," Obito told her.

Tsunade gave him a sideways glance.

"Why do you think I brought you with me? I'm surrounded by idiots."

Obito almost smiled.

* * *

Ayame could have very well killed the ROOT agents without leaving so much as a blood splatter on the wall. She just didn't. It might have been detrimental to fighting in an enclosed space, having blood pools on the floor, but she didn't care. She wanted Danzo to see the blood, she wanted him to step in it, to see if he would react in some way. He didn't, which was both disappointing and unsurprising. He merely eyed the blood and bodies with distaste.

Ayame stood by the window, her sword dripping blood to the ground, her eyes red. Danzo, now alone and without his bodyguards, stared back at her. She wanted to provoke him more, to make him rage and prove that she was always right about him.

"Didn't you ever wonder why my mother looked at you with such cold eyes?" She asked him, measuring his expression. "Sakura Uchiha, a hero of the village whose tragic family history endeared her even more, and you never understood why she never trusted you, someone she'd known since the village founding."

Danzo's lips turned downward and his eyes narrowed at her.

"You snap and snarl and provoke. I know your game, Princess. It won't work on me," Danzo responded easily.

Ayame bit at his own subtle provocation with enthusiasm and gave him a cruel smile.

"She told me you have always been weak and inferior, you've always been nothing beside Hiruzen Sarutobi."

That last comment hit Danzo where she had aimed, his ego was wounded and it made his entire being radiate anger and irritation. Whatever he was about to do or say was interrupted by the unwelcome release of a furious chakra from above them. Danzo cursed under his breath.

"Looks like little Minato is angry," Ayame hummed.

"So is Tsunade."

Ayame had seen Obito's arrival through her Sharingan a moment before he appeared and a moment before Danzo. Danzo used that moment to slam his hand against the barrier in another attempt to break it, and Ayame glanced at Obito, who met her eyes a moment. She glared at him, cursing his presence before lunging forwards with her sword to take off Danzo's head.

Danzo ducked and dodged her attack, swiping at her with a wind enhanced kunai.

"You seem a little panicked, Danzo" Obito commented as they exchanged blows.

Ayame almost threw a kunai at the kid in annoyance but she kept her focus on her opponent. She had seconds left and that was all. She could feel Minato working on the barrier. As the last blow to Danzo's twisted ego, she turned her head to make sure Obito couldn't hear or read her lips as she whispered to Danzo:

"Ryuu sends his regards."

There a split second of silence before he snarled at her.

"I knew it," he growled, backing away from both her and Obito.

Minato's work was finished without warning and the barrier fell, creating a moment's hesitation in the room. Ayame waited, appearing more patient than she was for Danzo to make up his mind: flee or fight. He didn't have much time since his opponent would be Minato Namikaze, someone even a man as arrogant as Danzo Shimura knew would be the end of him. Sometimes even Ayame wondered how long it would take Minato to kill her in a fight to the death.

With darting eyes and clear desperation, Danzo decided on flee. He made a break for the window and she could feel the surprise and suspicion from both Danzo and Obito as she stood still and let him go. Her suspicions that Obito was there for her and not Danzo were confirmed when he didn't make a move to go after the traitor. She could feel his eyes bore into her.

"What did you say to him?" Obito questioned. "You want to kill him, so why didn't you do it?"

Ayame's body shook as she fought against the temptation to hunt down Danzo and slaughter him. Kakashi and Minato appeared at the door, seeing them both inside the room. Tsunade's thunderous chakra was quickly approaching. Ayame refused to look at anyone for a moment as she stilled her body and prepared herself for what she was going to do next.

"Where is he?" Minato demanded, looking at the carnage in the room. Blood pooled on the floor, splattered on the walls, dripping down her sword, and four masked dead bodies without their master in sight.

Ayame nodded to the window but just as Kakashi and Minato moved forwards and were about to go after him, Ayame had her sword at Kakashi's throat, forcing Minato to stop and stare at her.

"What are you doing?" Obito jumped forwards.

"You have a choice to make, Hokage."

Kakashi stared at her calculatingly, reading that she wasn't truly a threat to him and stood without panic. Now that she had everyone's full attention she lowered her sword and stepped back.

"What choice?" Minato asked in a hard voice.

"I want to know that too," Tsunade said from the doorway, enraged.

Ayame sheathed her sword.

"You don't need to risk the lives of your shinobi to get rid of Danzo. Let him go and have the work done for you. It's already in motion."

She could feel Obito putting together the pieces of what she'd said and then look at her in horror.

"You didn't - "

Suddenly the world went back and she felt pulled and she was not standing in the hospital room any longer. She glanced around; she was in total darkness, and felt the multiple blocks on her chakra and the power of the seals in the room and immediately understood, anger flaring.

"MINATO!"

She screamed his name, angry that he had done this, angry that she hadn't seen it coming, angry that she hadn't been able to read his movements and evade him.

Over the intercom, his voice was firm and unrelenting.

"I told you what the consequences would be for acting independently."

Ayame hissed.

"You foolish brat!" She screeched. "Let me out of here!"

"Ayame Uchiha, you are being held under suspicion of treason and collusion with enemies of the Leaf Village. I wouldn't bother to try to find a way out of the room you're in, it was designed for you and sealed by me."

Ayame screamed in frustration, wanting to tear down the walls of her darkened prison and rip out the floor.

"I will kill you when I get out of here!" She threatened Minato. "You can't keep me in here! I have to be there to stop him!"

There was silence, and after a few moments, she realised that he'd left her there and now she was alone and imprisoned.

Her manic laughter echoed off the walls and she tried to absorb what had just happened and how the hell she could have miscalculated Minato's response.


End file.
